A Forever Love
by Krystal4
Summary: An unknown Hogwarts character tells her story and how her life was effected by Harry Potter and company. Sit through the drama, romance, mystery and suspense as she tells how her life changed because of the boy who lived...
1. Prolouge

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Prologue:

We all confess our undying love for some person at some time in our lives, whether its to your life partner or a boy/girlfriend that you think you're meant to be with. But if only it were that easy... What happens to the people who have their one true love taken away? Will they ever get another chance at love? And how would they act around those who took their love away, intentionally or not?

Not all these questions can be answered, because everybody is different. We try to rationalize something as complicated as love constantly but we don't realize... love is not rational. This is the story of an undying, forever love. Romance, drama, suspense, tragedy and even action is contained in this story. But its more than just that. Try to answer those questions from before in a short, right-to-the-point type answer. Trying to answer them, even in a long worded answer, is difficult because there is no definate answer. Our emotions are changing all the time. This story contains all these questions, though few answers.


	2. Introduction

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Introduction:

Not many people know the truth. Only I have the whole story. Only I can tell you what really happened that day. I was there. I was there and I saw it all along with one other. She saw it too, and I believe she still hasn't forgiven me. I could've stopped it. I could have done something... _anything_! But no, I froze and watched as he slipped away. He slipped into darkness... he was gone. In one instant he was gone from this mortal life. I will never forgive myself for what I did... more for what I didn't do. For eight years I've held it all inside. Somehow, however, its all coming back. All at once it seems to be unraveling and finally, I can tell my story. His story. _Our _story.


	3. Blue Haze

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Chapter One: Blue Haze

In order for you to really understand what happened, I have to take you back a few years. I suppose it started in my first year of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Perhaps you already know the story of the 'boy who lived', so I won't waste time explaining that. Yes, I too, was a witch. I had seen him for the first time at school...

"Harry Potter!" Professor McGonagall had called Harry to sit under that dreadful sorting hat. It was dirty and dusty. It looked as if it had been used for the same purpose decades before. I wasn't watching the famous Harry Potter, however. I felt my knees growing weak as I stood on my toes to see over the hoarde of new students in the Great Hall, like myself. I tried to stay up, but I had stumbled backwards.

"Oh! I'm sorry!" I said as I clumsily thrashed into a brunette standing behind me.

"Its alright. Hey, are you okay?" She asked with a kind smile plastered on her face.

"Oh, yeah. Are you? I'm really sorry, its just -" I stopped myself. "I'm Krystal, by the way. Krystal Montague." I said, sticking out my hand in hopes of quickly changing the subject.

"Roxeanne Keinath." She said, keeping her cheery smile on. She was quite polite, not to mention beautiful. She had short, dark, curly brown hair and was about 5"2' in height. She had brilliant bluish eyes and a few freckles scattered on her face. She was the perfect weight as well. She was wearing dark makeup that only brought out her wonderful features. I wouldn't have been suprised if she had more than one boy trying to get a date with her at the time. "I'm hoping to get into Gryffindor." She told me. "Look who else is there." She pointed towards the Gryffindor table. He was just sitting down. He had messy, dark hair and round glasses. "Isn't he gorgeous?! I just have to meet him!"

I recognized the boy as Harry Potter. He was quite adorable. Realizing this, I snapped around looking for the incredible boy I had seen before. I found him in the crowd. How could I miss him? He had slicked back blonde hair and was simply gorgeous. He turned back to look at one of his friends and I caught a glimpse of his face. He had beautiful blue shimmering eyes that I just couldn't take my own off of. I sighed deeply and Roxeanne must have realized I was staring at some one.

"Who are you looking at?" She asked. My face turned bright red and I turned away, trying to hide within my own robe. "Oh, come on now! I know you were looking at somebody!" She looked around as to see who I would be looking at. "Oh, just tell me!" She begged.

I took a while before saying anything. I was thinking about the pair of eyes I had just seen. They were amazing and bright. You wouldn't have been able to miss them in a crowd of a thousand.

"Roxeanne?" I nudged her. "Who is that?" I asked, nodding towards the boy. I looked back at her and watched as her eyes widened when they fell upon him.

"Him?!" She asked, almost sneering. She seemed very suprised.

I let out a sigh again. "Yes, him! Don't you see him? He's..." I couldn't get the words out fast enough and Roxeanne stopped me from saying any more.

"He's horrible!" I stared at her in disbelief. My mouth must have been open as well because when she looked at me, she chuckled and raised her hand to push my jaw up. Before either of us could say another word, Roxeanne was called up to the sorting hat. She looked at me for a moment and made a face that said: _Oh, shit! Its my turn!_

"Good luck!" I whispered and turned back to admire the boy. I looked around for him, but he wasn't there! I was practically jumping to see over the crowd just so I could see his wonderful eyes. If only I could see his glamourous blue eyes once again, I'd be happy. After a few minutes of bouncing around, while trying not to make a scene, I gave up. _He probably noticed I was looking at him_, I thought.

I turned back around to look up at Roxeanne when I saw two blue eyes. I made a loud noise, although I think it was a gasp. "You!" I breathed. I saw him tilt his head a bit and give somewhat of a smile.

"You know me, then?" He asked. I didn't know exactly what to say. I only shook my head. "Well, now you do." He smirked. "I'm Draco Malfoy... son of Lucius Malfoy. Perhaps you've heard of him." He spoke in a witty voice. His smile finally showed. _Ahh, bliss._ I wanted to wrap my arms around him right then and there. To my suprise, however, he held out his hand. "Well? Aren't you going to tell me your's?"

I stammered for a moment and took his hand. "K-Krystal." I whispered. I cleared my throat and spoke again. "Krystal Montague." I watched as he took my hand and raised it to his face, where he gave it a kiss. I almost died right there on the spot. I felt so foolish, standing there with a wide smile on my face as he put my hand back.

"Hope to see you in the same house as me." He finally said as he was called to the sorting hat. Before the hat even got fully down to his head, it shouted that he was in Slytherin. I looked over to Roxeanne, who had been placed in Gryffindor as she wished. She was happily giggling with a bunch of red haired boys and playfully flirting with Harry.

"Krystal Montague?" Professor McGonagall finally called me up to the hat. I stood there for a moment, looking at Draco. All I could do was smile as he winked at me. I was shaking with excitement. I slowly made my way towards the old hat. I sat down on the stool that was prepared. I deeply wanted to be placed in Slytherin so I could be with Draco. Then again, I turned to Roxeanne. She was my only friend at Hogwarts and she seemed to be easily making friends in Gryffindor. The hat was placed on my head. I heard that cold voice speaking in my ear. "_Well now, lets see. You have good qualities in you, I see. Gryffindor would be well for you. But what's this? A yearn to be in Slytherin? Perhaps Slytherin... yes, you would enjoy that, wouldn't you? Maybe..._" But before my mind could comprehend, the hat had already shouted, "GRYFFINDOR!"


	4. The Crew

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Chapter Two: The Crew

My mind was racing. _Gryffindor?_ I kept asking myself, as I looked over to Draco who wouldn't stop staring. I shaped the words _I'm sorry _with my mouth towards him. I didn't know why I should be sorry, but it seemed the appropriate thing to say at the time. He simply nodded but quickly turned away. I looked up at the rest of the Gryffindor table. Roxeanne was there clapping with the rest. She was waving for me to go over by her. I sat there next to her. I didn't speak right away. My eyes were locked on the Slytherin table. I kept waiting for Draco to pick his head up and look at me. I only wished he would. But he never did. I knew I wouldn't see his entrancing eyes again that day. I looked down at the empty plate in front of me.

"Krystal, this is going to be so great!" Roxeanne finally spoke. "We're going to be in the same dorms and everything!" I think she could tell that I didn't share her enthusiasm. "Look," she whispered so only I could hear. "Draco isn't all that great. But, before I go judging, talk to him. Although... I don't know of Slytherins that speak to Gryffindors..."

"Gee, doesn't **that **make me feel better?" I snapped at her. I didn't mean to sound so harsh but all I could think about was that I was in Gryffindor and Draco was all the way across the room in Slytherin. I knew that students in the Gryffindor house and students from Slytherin were enemies by tradition. I knew it was going to be near impossible for Draco and I to even become friends.

Roxeanne looked around for a moment. "Harry!" She called happily. "Harry, this is Krystal. Krystal, this here is Harry Potter. That's Ron Weasley and his brothers: Percy, Fred and George." She told me, pointing to each of them. It wasn't hard to tell that they were brothers. They all had the same head of red hair. Besides that, Fred and George were identical twins. "Next to Ron is Neville Longbottom and next to him is Seamus Finnaginn. Oh, right, and this is Dean." She said, speaking of the boy who had just sat down next to me. I smiled happily and shook hands with all of them. I desperately tried to get the thought of Draco out of my mind, so instead, I tried memorizing everyone's names. _Harry and Ron... that's easy enough. Percy, George, Fred. Oh wait, was it Fred and **that's** George?_

"Well then, I suppose we'll all be in the same classes then... as far as us first years go." I spoke up, trying to make conversation.

All I knew so far, besides their name, was that they were extremely friendly. I knew I made some friends right away. They all seemed so nice. Before long, I could tell who was whom just by the way they acted. Percy was the smart one, always obeying the rules and doing the right thing. This could be a bad trait at times, however. You could never get away with anything while Percy was around. I still couldn't tell the difference between Fred and George but I knew them from the others. Aside from the fact that they were identical twins, they had hysterical personalities. They were always playing jokes and pranks and they were so funny. I suppose at times, they didn't know when to stop, though. Harry was already well known for that legendary scar on his forehead. He seemed to be the only one who didn't understand the significance of this, though. Besides that, Harry was really a gentleman.... for an eleven-year-old, that is. Ron was always goofing off with Harry and they were never separated. Ron had a great sense of humor as well. Oh, and Neville. There is only one word you could use to describe Neville. **Clumsy!** It's not that the boy caused the situations he got himself into... its just that he seemed to always get himself into ridiculously humiliating situations! For instance, in our very first flying lesson, before anyone had even taken off, Neville lost control of his broom and went flying off somewhere. He ended up breaking his wrist. Then there is Seamus. How does one describe Seamus? Well, witty and funny. He wasn't the most brilliant wizard and set fire to almost everything he had ever pointed his wand towards. For example: a cup of water, a feather, his eyebrows, and a small patch of hair in the back of his head! And lastly was Dean Thomas. He and I weren't the closest of friends but he seemed nice enough. We'd talk every now and then while eating meals or as we passed in the corridors. Other than that, though, we never really saw each other. The only thing I knew was of his obsession with soccer - some sort of muggle sport. And finally, Roxeanne, who I've already told you about.


	5. Destruction of Love

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Chapter Three: Destruction of Love

That was the very first day I saw Draco, but I prayed it wouldn't be the last. Weeks turned to months until one day I finally approached Draco after a potions class one day. 

"Draco?" I asked, unsure of what I would say to him. He paused for a minute and turned around to face me. "Have you... Have you been avoiding me?" There. I finally said it. "Before I was sorted into Gryffindor, I thought we could be... friends." He just looked at me for a minute. 

We stood there until we both realized we were going to be late for our next class. "Listen Krystal..." Draco began. "I do want to be your friend. But... you're in Gryffindor. It would be really hard to even try and besides... you're friends with_... Potter_." He told me with a disgusted look on his face. I shook my head as if to ignore the fact that he was insulting Harry. 

"Draco! Puh-lease!" I said in a sarcastic voice. "Just because of my friends and the house I was placed in, you'd rather not be friends with me at all? Look at me and tell me that's true." He looked up at me. He really was gorgeous. I knew it then. I know it now. I'll always know it. But somewhere... sometime... I forgot.

"Okay Krystal... let's try." Draco finally said, smiling. I was beaming with joy. 

Draco was merely a crush. And, after a few months, I got over him. I no longer liked him as anything other than a friend. Oh, I knew he was gorgeous and I knew that he could have any girl he wanted. To my surprise, for four years, he didn't have one. It was only months into my fifth year when my feelings for Draco arose yet again. It just so happens that Harry and I had been dating for three months already. Harry had asked me to date him after the sorting ceremony in our fifth year. We watched all the first years get sorted and afterwards, we snuck up to the common room before any one else. We were all alone and he told me that he knew he wanted to be more than friends. Then he asked me. I, of course, said yes. I don't think anyone in their right mind who knew Harry like I did would say no. Harry was an amazing boyfriend. He was always so kind and loyal. He was very honest, as well. He'd tell me the simplest of things but coming from him, those things would seem incredibly romantic. I knew there would be nothing better. I knew how much I liked Harry and I felt that Harry thought the same of me. I'm not sure if I had loved him at that point, so early in our relationship. I think I first realized I loved him when I thought I had lost him.

As I said though, those romantic feelings for Draco were coming back, slowly... but I felt the change. At first it was nothing. I just had realized how attractive he was, which everyone knew about him anyway. He and I had been friends for too long for me to think anything of it. One night, however, I had a dream. I dreamed that Draco and I were dating and it turned Harry jealous. In the end, somebody died. I didn't find out who. I only knew that it was one of them. I awoke screaming in a cold sweat. Hermione, a wonderful friend since my third year, and Roxeanne, who I had become best friends with immediately, came over to my bed when they heard me scream. I told them all about it. Roxeanne found it funny that I was dreaming of Draco while Hermione, who was much more worried at the thought, warned me about the dream. 

"Next time, tell me immediately. Dreams can mean things you know!" Hermione said nervously. Hermione had brown curly hair with natural blonde highlights. She was, well, somewhat of a nerd. Then again, we were all friends with Harry, which made us pretty popular. Of course, that's not why we were friends with him. Hermione was the bookworm of our group. She was rather pretty but could be stuck up at times. She thought she was right all the time and if you argued with her about it, it would take a long time before she'd ever admit that she was wrong. 

"Oh lighten up Hermione!!" Roxeanne said, rolling her eyes. I knew that Roxeanne wasn't exactly best friends with Hermione. Once they got into a fight because, even though Hermione was just told of how much Roxeanne liked Harry, Hermione went and hooked up with him one summer. Now that I was dating Harry, Roxeanne tried to convince us that she didn't like him anymore... we knew better. "You'll frighten her over a dream! Don't be ridiculous! Dreams may mean something but neither Harry nor Draco are going to die!! Understand?" Roxeanne almost shouted, her eyes flashing from Hermione to me. I deeply wanted to believe her but something told me there was worse to come. 

"Alright, if you say so Roxeanne..." Hermione was unsure though. I could tell. I couldn't fall back to sleep after that. I just kept thinking about Draco and Harry from my dream. The main reason I couldn't sleep, however, was because I didn't know who died. I needed to know!! What if Harry died?! I'd be crushed! And Draco!! Oh, Lord, I didn't want to even think about it. Unbelievable amounts of pain seemed to be drawn towards me at that point. For a week afterwards, sobbing in bed was part of my schedule and I ended up crying myself to sleep every night. 

After that, everything went back to normal. I got over my dream, convincing myself that death would not come to either of them. Not so early in their lives. And everything was wonderful again...

"Draco!" I laughed. He grabbed me from behind. I knew it was him. Of course it was him. He does the same thing every day. I couldn't help but laugh out as he wrapped his arms around my stomach. "Hey!" I shouted. "You know I'm ticklish!" I told him as I turned to face him. "I have to go to class... YOU DO TOO!" 

"What? No goodbye kiss?" He joked. 

Without realizing exactly what I was doing, I turned back, ran over to him and gave him a small peck on the lips. I backed away and paused for a moment as I watched as Draco's eyes widened. My own eyes widened as I realized that I had never done that before. I have never done more than hug Draco in our five years of friendship. I cleared my throat quickly. "See you later, Draco." I watched as he gave me a nod and I walked in a daze to my next class. 

As I approached the classroom, I was so completely wrapped up in my own thoughts (trying to convince myself that a small kiss to Draco meant nothing) that I hadn't noticed Harry standing there waiting for me. "A bit distracted today?" 

I jumped at the sound of his voice. "Harry!" I gasped. He stood there and showed me that smile which I had grown to love these past few months. 

"Hey!" He finally said and gave me a hug. Ah, I fell perfectly into his arms. Harry, who was now quite a few inches taller than me, leaned down and gave me a perfect little kiss. It was completely innocent, yet amazingly romantic. That's what I loved about him, I believe. How he could be so childlike and still be the most romantic person I knew. When I was around Harry, all thoughts of Draco and the innocent kiss cleared out of my mind. Only thoughts of Harry appeared in my mind then and that was all I wanted to see. 

"Come on. We're going to be late for Potions and Snape will throw a fit. You know he'll do anything to take points from Gryffindor." I told him as we walked into the classroom. 

"Mr. Potter! Ms. Montague! Will you be spending this class out in the hall, or can your _relationship_ wait about an hour?" Professor Snape hissed at the two of us. I felt my face turn bright red as I hurriedly got into my seat. I looked over to Harry, who's face was white, always being intimidated by Professor Snape. I let out a small giggle but hushed myself as Snape looked at me through the corner of his eyes.

It was the end of the lesson and we were cleaning our cauldrons when Draco tucked a not under my notebook. 

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Dear Krys,(what? Since when does Draco call me Krys? Only Harry calls me that... Okay, then!) 

__

I don't know what happened before. I know that we've never kissed. Not even a kiss like that - I still feel weird about it. You most likely think I'm being stupid, but please, write back. I'll talk to you later. 

Draco 

I wrote back to Draco telling him to meet me after class. I looked at him after he read it and he simply shook his head, implying _No_. 

I was determined to find out why Draco didn't want to meet me, so I followed him. Yes, I felt guilty at first, but looking back, it was probably one of the best decisions that I made that year. Draco finally stopped in an unfamiliar corridor in front of a girl. I didn't recognize, and didn't want to be seen, so I stayed behind one of the walls peeking over every few seconds to see what they were doing. 

"Draco!" She said. She sounded almost angry. "What happened?! You didn't do what I asked!" 

"What do you want me to do?! I'm NOT going to hurt her! She's one of my best friends and nothing you can say or do will ever change that, Bridget!" 

The girl made a devious face. "You know she doesn't feel the same way about you." I was shocked and enraged. 

"You're a liar and I want nothing to do with you! Understand!?" Draco screamed. I could hear how shaky his voice was at the time. I wanted nothing more than to go and comfort him... but I knew I couldn't. 

"Very well... no need to shout Draco, darling. Remember - I'm just trying to protect you. I know that you feel much more for Krystal than friendship. You'll do well to remember that." And she walked away down the opposite corridor from where I was standing.

I watched Draco kneel down to pick up the books he had been carrying from before. I wanted so badly to run to him, so I did. "DRACO!" I yelled, running down the corridor. He looked up at me in shock. 

"Krystal?!" He asked. "Krystal! What? What are you doing down here?!" He asked. I stopped running when I reached where he was and I knelt down to him. 

"Draco," I began. I didn't know what to say. He just sat there staring, and I did the same. We continued on like this until I couldn't take it anymore. "Draco... who WAS that?" 

"Oh." He said in a melancholy voice. "So you did see..." 

"Of course I saw! I- I heard your voice and came down this way." I quickly lied, not wanting to tell him that I followed him. 

"That was Bridget - or so you might've heard." He told me, without even looking up. 

"I heard a lot of things... Some I know aren't true Draco." I said, taking my hand and turning his face to look at me. "Others I weren't quite sure... you - well, you know what I'm talking about." 

"Which do you know for a fact aren't true?" Draco asked cautiously. 

"Draco! You KNOW you're my best friend, right? I... I love you, Draco." I told him. I didn't know what I was saying. I just wanted him to be comforted and... that's what came out. I- I didn't mean it. I couldn't have meant it... I was dating Harry... but still... 

"I love you too, Krystal." He said, finally looking into my eyes. "But, I think I love you differently." He told me shaking his head. He knew I didn't _LOVE_ him as anything other than a friend. I sat there with my jaw wide open for a few minutes. What was I supposed to say? _Draco loved me? He truly loved me? WHAT?! _

"Draco!" I said, taken back. "I- I don't know what to say." Draco shook his head at me. 

"I don't expect you to say anything. After all, you are going out with _Potter_." He explained. 

"Draco - I may be dating _Harry_, but I will always care about you. You're so important to me. I will always care for you, no matter what kind of relationship we have." I tried to reassure him of that, at least. 

"Oh come off it Krystal!" Draco shouted. I jumped back, surprised to see him acting this way. "If I was so bloody important to you, you wouldn't be going out with HARRY POTTER but you'd be going out with me!! Do you know how long I've had these feelings?! Much longer than I'm sure you'd expect and it's about time you know. I DO love you Krystal and I always have... always. You know what? Bridget was right." And I watched him storm off, not paying attention to me calling after him.

"Draco!" I yelled as I picked myself up and started after him. "Draco please! Come back! Just listen to me!" He ran off in the opposite direction and I was left in the unfamiliar corridor... alone.


	6. Losing Grip

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Chapter Four: Losing Grip

"Draco?" I asked, my voice starting to quiver in fear. There was nothing but darkness in the hall. "Lumos!" I shouted, pointing my wand outward. It didn't help that much, but at least illuminated my surrounding areas. I tried to find my way back to the Gryffindor common room. It was late. I knew that much. I couldn't find my way out of the area I was in. It was almost like a maze. After a while I found myself back in the very same corridor I had started out in. 

__

Isn't this the same corridor Bridget walked down? I asked myself, sticking my wand out ahead of me, trying to shed some light on the pitch-black passage. I saw a black figure that spoke in a voice I recognized. "Krystal." She said. 

"Who are you? Come in the light!" I commanded. I watched as she slowly stepped forward. "Bridget!" 

"Yes, you know me, don't you Krystal?" She said, with an evil smile on her face. 

"I only know what I've seen of you with Draco. And what I know, I don't like. How DARE you tell him those things! That I didn't care for him and -" 

"Well it was true, wasn't it?! You ARE going out with Potter, aren't you?!" She said with a menacing look to her face. She looked as if she was starving and I was a piece of fresh meat.

"I hate you." I scowled.

"Good, because I hate what you have... and I haven't given you anything to like." 

"W-well, I hate you with a passion." 

"You were spying on him... on us." 

"There is no 'us' when it comes to you and Draco." I said in a warned voice. 

"Oh, of course not! How can anyone come between Draco and yourself?" She mocked. 

"You... you little bitch! What are you thinking?" I shouted. She was going too far. She knew I was dating Harry and I cared for Draco. She had me hooked... all she could do now was reel me in. So what was she waiting for? I wanted to know what was going on in her head. 

"Oh, of nothing spectacular. I was just thinking that I'm going to need a better plan if I'm going to get through Draco using you. He loves you, you know. He'd do _anything_ for you." She gave somewhat of an evil chuckle. 

"Oh, THAT'S IT!" I yelled at her, before I jumped. I pounced on her from the side, throwing wild, hopefully meaningful punches while shouting random insults. I was enraged and there was no stopping me. I felt a wild blow at my stomach, then again to my face. That's all it took. My strength had left me and I completely blacked out.

It must have been at least two hours later when I woke up and found myself in a bed. It was completely dark and I could only see shadows moving around. I did, however, notice a head of white-blonde hair and I figured it to be Draco.

"Draco?" I asked. I tried to speak loud enough for him to hear me but all that came out was a scratchy whisper.

"I am so sorry, Krystal! I'm such an idiot!! I just left you there and you didn't even know where you were!" I heard his voice say. "And Bridget - oh, I can't believe you two fought! I'm really sorry! I should've at least showed you how to get -"

I wearily raised my hand to stop him. "No, Draco, it's fine. I'm fine... but I'm sorry. I..." I stopped for a moment and pushed myself to sit up in the bed. I was able to see a little better. My eyes adjusted to the darkness and I noticed we were in a dormitory. It wasn't much different from my own, only there were colors of green and silver flowing round rather than scarlet and gold. "I'm sorry Draco. I shouldn't ha-" But before I could get another word out, I noticed Draco leaning in and almost instantly, our lips met. I kept my eyes open (or at least the one that wasn't bruised), thinking that it wasn't real. How could it be? I pulled away as did he and I looked the other way.

"Sorry." He said quickly. "I don't know wha-" But I wouldn't let him finish. I leaned in again and kissed him. I couldn't help it. His kiss was so tender and fresh. I wanted, no, I needed more. Then it hit me - _Harry._

"Draco!" I exclaimed, pulling away for a moment. He looked at me, breathing hard. I stared into his entrancing crystal blue eyes and couldn't resist it any longer. We leaned in once more and I realized _Here I am, on Draco's bed... with him. And we're kissing! AND I'M DATING HARRY!_

I pulled away before it got any further. "No! I can't! Draco I-" Draco only looked at me. I'd never seen him more distraught. It just didn't seem right. "I'm sorry Draco... I... I have to go!" I ran out of his dormitory as fast as I could and ran through the Slytherin common room. I was panting hard, running with no hesitation down the long corridors to the Gryffindor tower. I felt the hot tears streaming down my face. I was so confused. I was clueless as to why I had even kissed Draco in the first place! All I knew was I needed to see Harry... I just had to talk to him... now. 

I shouted the password after slamming into the portrait of the Fat Lady. "You're going to have to move back if you want me to open." She informed me. 

I glared at her for a minute and spoke the password again. "Now open!" 

"Alright, dear. No need to get upset about it..." 

I ran into the Gryffindor common room and there was Harry, right where I needed him. "H-Harry!" I managed in between sobs. I threw my arms around him. He looked upset. "Oh, Harry, I'm sorry! I'm sorry I -" I cried into his arms. 

"Krystal, where were you?! Are you okay? What happened? Why are you crying?!" 

I could only shake my head. "I'm SO sorry Harry!" I didn't know what else to say at the time. I wanted to tell him everything and I knew that I had to... he deserved the truth. I couldn't keep it from him or it would eat me alive on the inside. I knew he'd be upset and there was a good chance he'd end up beating on Draco, but I had to trust him with this. I just had to tell him.

Harry sat me down on the couch. "It's okay... shush. Calm down." He said as he pat my head. 

"Harry! I'm so sorry! I swear I didn't mean - it didn't mean....! I'm sorry!!" I tried to explain as reasonably as I could. My words were chopped up by tears and sobs. 

"Krys, it's okay. Just tell me what happened!" I tried to calm down. I took deep breaths and eventually I was breathing normally. 

"Okay, Harry. I saw Draco and this girl talking. She was a real bitch, Harry. She was saying things to him and he was hurt and really upset." I was talking so fast, I wasn't sure if he understood me. "I ended up waking up in Draco's bed and," I could tell by the look on Harry's face that he didn't like where this story was going. I stopped for a minute to catch my breath and then continued. "I-I-" My voice was starting to crack again. "I... kissed him!" I said, and the tears came flowing down my cheeks. "Harry, I'm so sorry! I swear I didn't mean to! It didn't mean anything!! I'M SORRY!" 

Harry sat in silence for a moment, trying as well as he could to remain calm and take all this in. I saw the fury in his eyes, though. It wasn't hard to tell he was upset. Who could blame him, though? I kissed Draco. Draco Malfoy, Harry's sworn enemy and I _kissed_ him. 

"Krystal..." He started. I turned the other way, not wanting him to see my face and not wanting to see his at the time. I was afraid of what he might say. He turned my face back towards his with his hand. His warm, tender hand which, in any other situation, I would've enjoyed resting it there on my face. I felt horrible. He looked horrible and upset and I probably had mascara running down my face into his hands and on his shirt but, worst of all... he was hurt. "Why?" He asked. "Just tell me why." I only looked at him, gaping. My mouth hung open and I found myself at a loss for words. Harry looked back down to the floor. 

I sat there thinking. _Why had I kissed him, anyway? At the time, I wasn't thinking straight... but... why had I done it? _"Harry, I-" But before I could say anymore, Harry had gotten up and was heading towards the boy's dormitories. "Please don't just leave, Harry! Hear me out! Harry, PLEASE!" I begged of him to stay. 

"I don't think I can listen to you just now, Krystal. Not rationally... good bye." And before another word was said, Harry disappeared from sight. _Good bye? Was that good BYE he just said?... or good NIGHT? Shit... why am I such an idiot?_


	7. Coming Clear

****

Chapter Five: Coming Clear

I spent all of that night in the common room thinking about Harry. I spent most of that time sobbing over the fact that the stupid kiss shared by Draco and myself may have completely destroyed my relationship with Harry. 

For the next month or so, I could be found walking in a daze. I felt so empty. I wouldn't even look at Draco and Harry wouldn't dare look at me. I was only half there. Half of myself was in my classes and half of myself was taking the potions exams we so frequently got and eating lunch and even sleeping at night. The other half had been swept away as quickly as those few prized friends (and Harry...) had been taken from me. No, not taken... I let them go. It was my fault, afterall. I knew it... and I hated myself for it. Roxeanne and Hermione didn't talk to me because I hurt Harry. I had no one to talk to. I didn't have Harry, Draco, Roxeanne or even Hermione. Ron, Harry's friend, had already showed me what he thought of me (supposedly after Harry told him of what I did) so confiding in him wasn't even an option. I was alone. Completely and utterly alone.

Three months must have gone by this way. I really wasn't sure. I was in a pathetic state; hardly eating and my social life... well, that was gone. So I finally decided. What point did I have to live? My existence was making, not only myself, but others around me miserable. Nobody liked me, so what was I supposed to do? I thought I knew a solution. It was perfect. Why live if there is no point to life, right? So that cold January night I stayed up constructing a well thought suicide note. _Why not?, _I thought. _I don't have anything to live for! No friends, no Harry... not even Draco. _My life had become pointless and, as said before, I was a pathetic mess. 

I finished the note. I'd rather not tell you what was written in it... just harsh memories. Horrible feelings and such... nothing too pleasant. Well, I was ready. Or so I thought...

I'd taken up my wand. I figured a simple 'Avada Kedavra' would do it. I didn't want anything too painful. Yes, I was quite the coward for somebody who was brave enough to even consider suicide. But, this was my way out. I slowly picked up my wand, pointing it straight at my heart. I took in a deep breath and winced. _Here goes... you can do this Krystal. Make the pain stop. _All I could think about was that it was going to be over soon. There would be no more pain and nothing left to worry about. 

"Avada Keda-" 

"STOP!" I heard a voice shriek. "KRYSTAL! DON'T YOU DARE FINISH THAT SPELL - DON"T YOU DARE!" I opened my eyes and let out a small sigh.

"Roxeanne, let me be. Just let me be... Let me end this while I still have the courage alright?" I told her with tears in my eyes. I was partly relieved she had come down at that time. The truth was, I was frightened. I didn't WANT to die... I just thought it would be easier. I was still determined to do it. Make it quick and painless... but my courage was wearing away quickly. 

"Krystal..." Roxeanne said, slightly calmer seeing how I lowered my wand for a moment. "Please don't do this. Just THINK about what you're doing for a minute! PLEASE!" 

I couldn't stand this any longer. "STOP ROXEANNE!" I screamed out. "My life isn't worth anything to you... I KNOW!! So let me just finish this so I won't be a bother to anyone and I won't have to live with this pain, OKAY?! Because you have no idea... NO IDEA what I feel when you and Hermione scowl at me behind my back!" I said, voice shaking. I felt my eyes begin to tear. "You have NO IDEA what it's like knowing that the only people you ever really trusted or cared about HATE YOU and it's MY FAULT. I KNOW IT'S MY FAULT! I WAS STUPID AND I DON'T WANT TO DEAL WITH THIS ANYMORE SO LET ME BE!! LET ME JUST DO IT! NOW TURN AWAY IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE BECAUSE I'M READY TO DIE NOW WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT! I'M FINALLY READY FOR THE PAIN TO END AND YOU AND HARRY WON'T HAVE TO DEAL WITH THE PAIN I'VE CAUSED EVER AGAIN!" 

"BUT YOU'RE CAUSING MORE PAIN!" She shouted back. I stopped, too shocked to say anything. "We DO care, Krystal! Whether YOU like it or not, we DO care! Yes, you hurt Harry... and that hurt us all because you were so... I DON'T KNOW! You were so kind and you never hurt anyone... but you hurt Harry. Harry!! The boy we thought you cared for more than ANYONE! So we, I, for that matter, believed you really DIDN'T care! I felt you didn't care for anyone at all anymore, including MYSELF! BUT I NEVER STOPPED CARING ABOUT YOU! I'VE SEEN YOU LATELY... YOU'RE NOT HEALTHY! YOU NEVER EAT ANYMORE AND YOU DON'T SPEAK A WORD! I'M WORRIED AND SCARED BECAUSE I CARE! YOU'VE BEEN MY BEST FRIEND FOR FIVE YEARS, GOD DAMNIT!! DON'T DO THIS KRYSTAL! I CARE AND I'M HERE SO... PLEASE!" 

I dropped my wand, hands shaking. I fell to my knees and sobbed. I sobbed like the pathetic fool I was. My wand was only inches away from my fingers._ I can still do it, _I thought. _It's not too late! C'mon Krys... reach for the wand. You want to... c'mon it's not too late._ And just as my fingers reached out to re-grip my wand, another hand already had. Startled, I looked up to find Roxeanne with my wand. She tossed it to the other side of the room. I felt weaker than ever. I was vulnerable... sobbing... a mess! And there was my wand - my only one-way ticket out of the mess I was in - at least ten meters away. 

"No!" I sobbed. "Give it back!" My crying was only making me feel weaker and worse. But then - 

"Krystal, please..." Roxeanne had kneeled down next to me. She embraced me... embraced me like a sister, almost. It was the caring feeling I'd been longing for... and here it was. And finally I realized that this was better than killing myself. _She_ _DOES care. She's... _ My eyes widened to realize that Roxeanne was crying. Realizing this, I hugged back. We sat there for about a minute, just hugging. I still felt pathetic, but it wasn't because I had no friends and my life was pointless anymore... I felt pathetic now because my **BEST FRIEND **was forced to see me so close to taking my own life. 

"I'm sorry Roxeanne! I'm sorry I- I know I hurt everyone... everyone! I'm so sorry... I... I just want it to be over! I want the pain to be gone!" And after a moment of silence... "He hates me, doesn't he?"

This caused Roxeanne to release the hug she had locked around me so tightly. "What?" She asked, almost confused, wiping her eyes. "Who? Harry?!" 

"YES HARRY! He... well, he hates me, doesn't he?" 

"Oh God! Of course he doesn't! You know how many times he's felt GUILTY for your separation? I told him he was ridiculous because, well, it wasn't HIS fault..." 

"What? He felt GUILTY? Why?! It was ME!" 

"I swear that night you told him about what happened between Draco and you... he almost ran and killed Draco! He was furious... not so much at you, but at the fact that you did something to... hurt. Nobody really thought you were capable... all of the arguments around here; you were always the even one. You never took sides and... well, you always helped us work things out... nobody ever thought that YOU could hurt someone like... Harry. Somebody you cared about so much..." 

"I KNOW! I DON'T KNOW WHAT I WAS THINKING THAT NIGHT AND I'D DO ANYTHING TO TAKE BACK WHAT I DID! ANYTHING TO HAVE HARRY BACK! You have NO IDEA how much I regret that!!" 

"We all regret it..." 

"I'm so sorry... I never NEVER meant to hurt ANYONE! You know that, don't you?" 

"Of course... but... you shouldn't tell ME that... tell Harry." 

I nodded but I didn't know how I would even get Harry to sit down and listen to me at that point. I was still secretly thinking he hated me and I let out a great gasp of surprise when I heard another voice speak. A male voice... 

"No need." He said.

His voice sounded weak, like something was lodged in his throat. 

"Who's there?!" Roxeanne shouted out. No one was to be seen anywhere. All of a sudden, the large chair by the fire began to become blurry and all at once Harry appeared there, holding his invisibility cloak. "Harry?!" Roxeanne shrieked in surprise. 

I didn't know what to say, and so I just sat there. I opened my mouth, as if to say something, but I stopped myself as Harry began to walk closer. I was still kneeling and Harry joined me. 

"Er... I think I'll go up to bed. You're alright, aren't you now Krystal?" Roxeanne asked, heading for the staircase. I gave a nod, looking at her over Harry's shoulder. 

"Yeah." I cleared my throat. "Yeah, I'll... I'll be fine." And Roxeanne turned and went to the girls' dorms. I looked down, not really in the mood to stare at Harry right now. I probably looked horrible and my wand was still all the way across the room. 

"Harry..." I began. "Harry... oh, God, Harry I'm SORRY!" I finally exclaimed, feeling like I was about to start crying again. Even if I had to, I don't think I'd be ABLE to cry anymore at that point. 

Harry just leaned in and hugged me. "I know... I know. I heard everything." 

"E-Everything?" I prayed that he wasn't there the whole time... that he wasn't there when I was about to... to kill myself. 

"Yes... everything. I'd have stopped you myself if Roxeanne wasn't here. I thought it would be best, then, to maybe stay and listen to what you had to say. Sorry I didn't show you I was here sooner but... it was... interesting hearing what you had to say." 

I nodded. "I understand. I'd have done the same... but... that doesn't make up for anything I did. I don't know how I can expect you to forgive me. I know I hurt you, Harry. And I know I betrayed the trust of just about all of my friends... but I DO love you and I'd do ANYTHING to regain your trust... and... to regain... well, you." 

"Do you love him?"


	8. Whisk

****

Chapter Six: Whisk of Romance

"What? Who?" I was confused, being as how I was talking about OUR relationship (Harry's and my own) and now he was asking if I LOVED someone else? 

"MALFOY!" 

My eyes widened in shock. "HAVE YOU HEARD NOTHING I'VE BEEN SAYING THIS WHOLE TIME?!?" I exclaimed. "OF COURSE I DON'T LOVE HIM!! NOT IN THAT WAY, HARRY! Didn't you just say you were LISTENING?!" 

"Well, yes, but..." 

"BUT NOTHING! Harry, PLEASE! I BEG of you!! Please... forgive me..." I wrapped my arms around his neck and gave him a hug using all the strength I had in me. I smiled as he, too, wrapped his arms around my waist. 

"I forgive you Krys." He said, smiling. "Damn, I've missed you. I've missed this..." 

"I've missed you, Harry." I leaned up and we kissed and I felt loved, once again. I felt warm and safe there in his arms. And inside I could practically hear myself screaming, _I LOVE YOU, HARRY JAMES POTTER!_

That night I easily fell asleep, yet the sleep itself was restless. 

__

No! Draco, what are you doing?! Harry? WHERE IS HARRY?! I watched as Bridget walked out of the darkness that was behind Draco._ No... not you... no! NO! WHERE IS HE?! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?! _

__

You won't find him here... you know where he is. My eyes widened and I felt myself grow weaker with every word she said. 

__

No! HARRY! I shrieked, running to that secret hall I'd fought with Bridget in that night, so long ago, it seemed. I arrived at that secret corridor, not knowing how I got there. I say a body lying limply on the floor and immediately knew who it was. _Oh God..._ I ran towards him, effortlessly, and it felt as though I was standing still. _Please no... Please God please let him still be alive! _I was standing next to him now, looking down at his face. His eyes were closed and he was all scuffed up. _Harry! _I heard my own voice yell as I kneeled down to wake him. _Harry! Please wake up! Harry, please! _I just held him there, helpless. He was still breathing, though. I looked up, into the dark, and saw a pair of blue eyes. 

"HARRY!" I heard myself scream out. 

"Krystal?" I heard Roxeanne mumble. "Krystal - you okay?" I jumped, realizing I was in my bed.

Roxeanne, realizing I wasn't okay, ran over to my bed. I felt myself shaking. Roxeanne sat on the bed and listened to everything I told her. 

"Oh my... Krystal! That must have been horrible!" I simply nodded and she leaned over to hug me. 

"I don't know what to feel right now!" I told her, crying on her shoulder. "I'm angry and scared and I'm nervous and... worried." 

"I know Krystal. It's gonna be okay, I promise. It'll all be okay." Roxeanne tried to reassure me. 

"What if Hermione was right about dreams?" I asked cautiously. I watched as Roxeanne back up a little and inhale deeply. 

"Krystal... maybe you should tell Harry." She said. For the first time in all our friendship, I saw Roxeanne unsure of herself. I saw her fear starting to show through her seemingly rough exterior. She was worried. I could tell. 

"I guess I should. Do you think I should talk to Draco... after everything that's happened?" 

"I don't know Krystal... I mean, Draco IS the reason Harry and you were fighting, anyway."

"Yeah, but... he- he was one of my best friends Roxeanne!" 

"I know but... well, I wouldn't tell him about the dream. I think maybe you should wait and see what HE says about everything that's happened." 

I nodded. "Thanks Roxeanne." I said with a half-hearted smile. "What would I do without you?" 

Roxeanne returned my smile. "Hey - what are friends for?" She said, before going back to her bed. 

I couldn't fall back to sleep that night. The next morning I got ready quickly and ran down to the common room. Roxeanne came down about twenty minutes later. I was pacing, still waiting for Harry to come down. 

"Krystal!" Roxeanne laughed. "Calm down! It's still early! He'll be down soon." I nodded but I wouldn't stop pacing. I couldn't stop pacing. I relaxed a bit when Neville came down and told me Harry was getting ready.

"Hey Krys." Harry said. He sounded concerned and I hadn't even told him anything.

"What's wrong? You seem... tense." I told him.

"Oh - no! I'm fine. Are you okay? Sorry, I guess I was still thinking about last night... you know? You really scared me. I thought I could've lost you." Harry explained.

At that moment I realized that Harry was probably more worried about me than I was about my dream. This thought alone brought tears to my eyes. I refused to cry again, however. I closed my eyes and he brushed the back of his hand against my cheek. I held his hand there on my face for what seemed like an eternity. I opened my eyes to look up into his. Without even realizing it, I wrapped my arms around the back of his neck. His warm, comforting arms were around my waist. We both leaned in and kissed. That kiss alone made everything better. It was as if nothing horrible had happened and we were picking up right where we left off. We both slowly backed away. All I could do was smile. I felt numb.

"We've missed breakfast." He told me in a whisper.

"I don't care... you've missed Quidditch practice."

"I don't care... Oliver might... but I don't." He said in a hushed voice. I lowered my arms, realizing that they were still wrapped around his neck. "I love you, Krystal Montague." He told me, running his fingers through my hair. I let out a shaky sigh that finally caused my tears to break free.

"And I love you Harry Potter." I replied, gripping the back of his shirt as I hugged him.

That was probably the most romantic day of my life. I highly doubt there will ever be one better. It hurts just looking back on that. I should've told him about the dream then. I had my chance. I suppose I didn't want to ruin the moment. This was a decision I will always regret, for I'd never have another chance to tell Harry about my horrid dream.


	9. Gone

****

Chapter Seven: Gone

That night Harry and I snuck out of the common room under his invisibility cloak. Imagine the worst situation possible. Now triple that. That was how I felt when we thew off the cloak and bumped into Draco, who was looking for me.

"KRYSTAL!" He yelled. "God, Krystal, I'm SO sorry! Everything that's going to happen - er... happened. Everything that's happened. I just wanted to say I'm sorry. So sorry."

"Draco..." I said, shaking my head. "Don't be sorry. Please don't. I'M sorry. It was partly my fault, you know." Draco nodded and I knew he understood. It made me smile to see him smile again.

"Krys? If you want, we... we don't have to go tonight." Harry said in a pained voice. I saw Draco's smile drop as he realized that Harry was there.

"Potter." He said dully.

"Malfoy." Harry returned the attitude. Now I was so thankful that I made them promise not to fight around me.

"No... no Harry. We have to go. We said we would at least a week ago!" I explained. Draco looked downright angry now. "Draco - I'm sorry. Can we talk later?" I watched Draco give a small nod, not taking his eyes of Harry. I went and gave Draco a hug. I turned and saw Harry's stare was also locked on Draco. "Harry!" I said, snapping my fingers in front of his eyes. "You ready?"

"Wh- oh, right. Let's go." He said coldly. We snuck up to the owlry, one of my favorite places in Hogwarts. Despite the slight smell, you're able to sit on the windowsill and look out on the lake. Plus, the moon was always perfectly positioned to reflect off the lake.

"I love this, you know?" I told him.

"What?"

"Us..." I watched him smile. "and this great view, of course." I said, giggling. I gave him a kiss and before I even got the chance to pull away, I was forced back by a bony, but strong hand. I let out a small cry of surprise, and when I looked up, I noticed Harry was gone. "Harry? Harry, where'd you go? Harry!" I called. I followed the echo of noises I heard leading to the door. It sounded like a struggle between two men, or boys even.

"Krystal?!" I heard a panicked voice call. "Krystal!"

"Harry? Harry, where are you? I can't see a damned thing!"

"Kry-" I didn't hear anymore but I knew now where exactly I was in the owlry. I was right next to the door. I knew, only because it had slammed right after Harry started to say my name again. I pulled hard on the door handle, wanting to run out. I found it locked.

"HELLO?!" I yelled, banging on the door. "Anybody! Hello? Harry?! Let me out, please! ANYONE!?" The door was locked and pulling on it wasn't doing anything, aside from draining me of all strength. "Oh, damn..." I whispered, trying to see through the blanket of darkness ahead of me. I heard owls hooting peacefully in the near distance, but couldn't see them, no matter how hard I squinted. 

I must have sat there for nearly an hour until...

"Kry-Krystal! Krystal Montague." I heard a low voice call. The voice sounded angry and rough, but that may have been because he was out of breath.

"Who's there?" I called back. His hand found my forearm and gripped it tightly.

"You must come with me. It's urgent."

"Wait! Who are you?!" I yelled, struggling to break free.

"You'll hear more later. For now, you must come with me!" The man was intimidating and my pulling back wasn't having any effect. I walked forward with the man. _If he was dangerous, he'd have his wand out... wouldn't he? _Then I thought, _Do dangerous muggles always have their guns out? Probably not..._

"Who are you? What do you want?!"

"No time to explain now. It's about Harry, so hurry!" Hearing this, I rushed forward. I frantically asked him questions, wondering where Harry was and if he was okay. He ignored me completely, however. We finally got to the entrance hall of Hogwarts. "Stay close." He whispered. "It's not safe out there tonight..." I followed the man and I realized he was leading me straight for Hagrid's hut. I heard a loud noise out around the back of the hut and I took a look.

"Buckbeak...?" I asked in awe. Buckbeak was Hagrid's old pet hippogriff. He had run away the night he was to be executed for 'hurting' Draco. How'd he get back? I wondered. The man knocked loudly on Hagrid's front door.


	10. Back in Black

****

Chapter Eight: Back in Black

"Hagrid! Open up! I've found her!"

No more than a few seconds later, Hagrid swung the door open. "Wha? Why'd you go an' get her fer? It ain't safe!"

"I know, I know. I thought she'd want to know before anyone told her though. It's brutal news, after all."

Hagrid looked as if he was questioning letting us in. Finally he let out a big sigh and said, "A'right, come in. Bet'r than out there." The man led me in, still gripping my arm. He finally released it once we were inside. Also there, other than Hagrid, was Professor Dumbledore.

"Professor!" I said in surprise. "Wha- what's going on?"

"I'm afraid I have some bad news to deliver, Miss Montague." I clenched my teeth around these words._ Bad...? Didn't that man say it had something to do with Harry, though? Oh, God... _I winced, expecting the worst... and I got it. "Harry Potter..." I was anxious yet at the same time dreading the next part of his sentence. "...is missing."

All of a sudden, I felt as if some one had punched me right in the gut... hard. I was practically shaking, but I was too worried to be afraid.

"Where is he?" I said in a feeble voice. "What's happened?!"

"We're unsure of anything, other than the fact that he is indeed... gone."

"Gone?! How can he just be... gone? This is Hogwarts, for pity's sake! The safest place in the wizarding world!! How can he just be gone?!"

"We thought of everything..." Hagrid said, trying to help but not really accomplishing the task.

"No, not everything." Spoke up the man in black. The same man who had taken me from the owlry. I had almost forgotten he was there. "If we thought of everything, he wouldn't be missing!" He snapped.

"Calm yourself. It's not good to get too worked up over these things." Professor Dumbledore said.

a word about me..." He spoke. "Calm yourself, Krystal. I'm Harry's godfather and I'm not a murderer!" I was still unsure. Sure, Dumbledore and Hagrid trusted him and it seemed as if Harry must have trusted him too... but this was a man who spent years in Azkaban and managed to escape. He was on the loose... and now I knew where.

"And what would he have told me about you?" I snapped.

"He told you nothing of his third year?"

"Well..." It took enough time, but they managed to convince me that Sirius was innocent. Things were a little shaky after that. It

"Who are you, anyway?" I asked him. He finally lowered his hood so I could see his face. I jumped back in horror at the man I saw. Frightened, now more than ever, I tried to run out, but Hagrid stopped me.

"Ya can't go out there!" He said. "It ain't safe!"

"DO YOU KNOW WHO THAT IS?! ARE YOU ALL MAD?! LET ME GO!"

"Krystal! Calm down!" Professor Dumbledore spoke up. "He is not what you've heard. Has Harry told you nothing about him?" I stopped dead and turned to the man.

"Professor, with all do respect, I realize you're a trusting man but _Sirius Black _is not a man to be trusted! He's on the dark side! Killed Harry's parents, that one! HOW CAN YOU EXPECT ME TO BE CALM?!"

"Evidently Harry hasn't said felt very strange being in the presence of an escaped convict from Azkaban... but as long as he was truly innocent, it was alright, I suppose.

"Krystal, the last we know, you were in the owlry with Harry. What happened?" Sirius asked me.

"How'd you kn-"

"Don't bother asking... it was hard enough to spy on him from outside the castle - don't make me explain. Now, what happened?"

"Well, Harry and I were just sitting and, well, we leaned in to..." I blushed a violent color of red. "...to kiss. Then I felt somebody push the two of us apart. When I looked back up, I could hear Harry but I couldn't see him. I suspect he was under the invisibility cloak. It was pitch black all of a sudden and I found my way to the door, following their voices. Then the door slammed and I couldn't hear them anymore. When I tried to open the door it was locked until Sirius came and brought me here. That's it."

"And you didn't see anything? The man's face? Are you sure it was a man?"

"Well it was definitely a male but I suppose it could've been a boy, as well." Sirius and Dumbledore exchanged a look before turning back to me. "What?"

"Well, if it was some one around your age - a young boy - it could be any male student in the school." Sirius explained. "Couldn't we just see who arrives to class tomorrow and use the process of elimination to figure out who it might've been?"

"We could... but it's not a boy from this school. No, I don't think it was a boy at all. A male, indeed... yet, not just a boy. No, some one who knows their way around Hogwarts fairly well did this. They'd have to, you see, because the lock on the door of the owlry is hidden. Not just a boy..."

"How can you be so sure?" I asked him.

"I have my own process of elimination, Krystal." He told me.

"Sir, not to be rude or anything, but what do you expect we can do here? I mean, we are completely clueless to where Harry might be or who might have him. Isn't this just some wild goose chase?"

"Ah, Miss Montague, but we do have a clue as to who might have him." Now Sirius and I exchanged a look.

"Who?" Sirius asked.

"Who do we know that hates our Mr. Potter? Other than Voldemort, that is." My eyes widened, immediately realizing whom he was talking about.

"Professor! You can't mean..." He only nodded. "But... but he would never!"

"...Did I miss something...?" Sirius chimed in.

In unison, Professor Dumbledore and I said, "Malfoy."

"Malfoy? Malfoy as in Lucius Malfoy?!" He asked with rage. "What is he doing here?"

"Not him, Sirius. His son, Draco. He's here. He could be working through his son." Dumbledore explained.

"No! Professor, he wouldn't! I know he wouldn't!" I cried, trying to defend Draco.

"You must admit that Draco and Harry have never gotten along, Miss Montague."

"Well, yes... but..."

"Draco Malfoy, huh? Should we have a talk with this Draco Malfoy?" Sirius said with a sneer. I didn't want Draco to get hurt and I was so sure that he wouldn't hurt Harry in a fatal way. Draco just... wouldn't. He'd never. "Does Draco resemble his father? Lucius? That sleazy, hideo-"

"That'll do, Sirius."

"Sorry, sir. Well, Krystal - I think we've kept you enough for tonight. Wouldn't you agree?" He asked Dumbledore. The professor nodded. "I'll take you back up to the Gryffindor common room safely." I nodded in agreement. I knew I'd probably never get to sleep with the thought of Harry missing in my mind, but at least I might be able to talk to Roxeanne about it.

"Oh, and Krystal, we'd appreciate it if you could keep this to yourself for some time." _How did he do that? It's like he's reading my mind!_

"Oh! ...Yes sir." Sirius took me back into Hogwarts. He left me at the entrance to the common room.

"Mr. Black? Sirius? Do you think I might be able to talk to Draco before... before you do?" Sirius turned back around and looked at me and I knew he was seriously debating what his answer was going to be. "It's just... well, we're pretty decent friends and I haven't really talked to him, not seriously, in quite some time and I'd like to before you go questioning him, if you don't mind." I'd never admit it, but Sirius was intimidating. I was more than just a little scared of him. His seriousness plus the intensity of Harry missing sent shivers down my spine.

"I suppose it couldn't hurt."

"Thanks!" And I left into the common room.


	11. The Box of Harry

****

Chapter Nine: The Box of Harry

As happy as I may have seemed at the point when Sirius left, that attitude left me as I entered the common room. I sat down on the couch in front of the fire and sobbed. I didn't know what to do. Harry was gone and no one knew where he was or who had him. What if something terrible happened? I don't think I could bear it. I decided, being it was late, to go lie down. I knew I wouldn't sleep... how could I knowing that Harry is gone?

I went to my bed and laid down. I was right. No matter what I did, I just couldn't rest. I sat up and started rummaging through one of my suitcases. I found a box I had labeled 'Harry' and opened it on my bed. I started the box with the first present Harry had ever given me; a necklace with a heart shaped charm hanging from it. The box grew with everything that reminded me of him. I didn't think I'd ever need to go back and look at it. I thought that one day I'd show it to Harry, or just open it myself and have fun looking over how our relationship had grown. Now I found myself longing for those memories. For all I knew, Harry was gone. I didn't know where he was, how he got there, or whom he was with. I didn't know if he was safe or even alive... and it scared me. I hated being so uncertain. The first thing I pulled out of the box was a small album. In the album were Valentine's Day cards from Harry and pictures of us together... or just him.

I remember the most recent letter he had written me. It was so romantic and I remember how I didn't want to put it away into the album and had to remind myself that I'd always be able to look back on it. I flipped to the page where it was and pulled it out. I began to read it slowly to myself.

__

Dear Krystal,

Being with you has made me realize a few things. It's made me figure out some things and it's made me more confused about things. I used to think that love was a casual sign of affection and now I've noticed, love is many splendored thing. Love lifts you up where you belong. All you need is love and I was made for loving you, Krystal. You were made for loving me. Love is like a jewel... a rare jewel that people search forever to find... and I've found it in you. I never knew I could feel like this... like I've never seen the sky before. I want to vanish inside your kiss... everyday I love you more and more. Seasons may change from winter to spring but I love you... until the end of time. Come what may, I will love you... until my dying day.

How wonderful life is... now you're in my world...

I love you.

Forever Yours,

Harry

I tucked the letter away, beginning to cry again. I didn't want to cry again... it made me feel weak and vulnerable. I didn't need to feel any more vulnerable than I already did without Harry. I was scared and lost... I wept myself to sleep that night and it brought back memories... memories of Draco and I kissing which led to Harry and I fighting. I thought of my suicide thoughts and attempt and how Harry reacted. I thought of how he held me in his arms that night and I thought of tonight when Harry and I were simply sitting... kissing in the owlry when, whoever it was, took him away. That's when I stopped. I forced myself to stop and fell asleep.

"Krystal!" Hermione and Roxeanne called to wake me up. "Krystal? Krystal! Wake up!"

"Mmm... what?" I moaned sleepily. "What?"

"Professor Dumbledore's asked to see you! Says it's important! What's going on?"

I bolted out of bed and threw on my school robes. "I-I have to go! I'll explain later!"


	12. Ransom

****

Chapter Ten: Ransom

I ran as fast as I could to the Headmaster's office. Professor Snape spotted me on the way.

"STOP RUNNING! Ten points from Gryffindor!" He shouted. I didn't care. I ran right past him. I got to the statue that would lead up to his office. I shouted the password, out of breath. I had been in his office once before, but then because I was in trouble for going in the Forbidden Forest. I had never been asked there with important news.

"Professor? Professor Dumbledore?" I asked, out of breath, as I entered his large office. I didn't see him.

"Ah, yes. Krystal Montague." He said. I turned to him and he didn't look happy. _Oh, no... _"We've gotten news." He told me.

"We?" I asked, unsure of what he meant. Then he pointed towards his desk and a man who I hadn't noticed before was standing there. It was Sirius Black. "Oh! Hello." He didn't say anything. He was just as scary as he seemed when I first met him. Somewhat... cold. "What's the important news? Good, I hope..."

"I'm afraid... not." My heart sank to my feet.

"What? What's happened?" I asked frantically.

"We've... received a letter. Do you recognize this handwriting?" He showed me the letter. He didn't hold it out long enough for me to read it but the first line I saw: _To Whom it May Concern: _in very nice script. I had to admit, the writing looked familiar. When they asked me who it belonged to, only one person came to mind.

"That's Harry's handwriting." I told them.

"What?!" Sirius jumped. Dumbledore looked interested.

"I'd never miss it. I have letters of his... if you'd like to see."

"Please."

"They're in my dormitory. Accio box!" I summoned the box. It flew into my hands about a minute later. I dug through it looking for the least embarrassing letter. I found a note he wrote me telling me to meet him after class. After Dumbledore and Sirius did a few checking spells, it was confirmed. The handwriting was Harry's.

"I think you should take this letter. A copy will be made and sent to your dormitory. We'll need the original to look at for a while longer. That's all... you can get back to class now."

"Professor, can't I just read it now?"

"I think it would be better if you went to class."

"Yes, professor." I went to Transfiguration with a pass from the headmaster. He must have written something to Professor McGonagall in the note because she let out a small gasp while reading. I sat down in my usual seat next to Roxeanne.

"What's going on? What did Professor Dumbledore want?" She whispered.

"Miss Keinath! Would you be so kind as to tell us the proper spell for changing a pen into a snake? And, perhaps, save your socializing for after class?" The professor said, noticing that the two of us were talking. Roxeanne turned a bright pink.

"I'm not really... sure."

"Yes, well, perhaps you would be sure if you were paying attention."

"Yes ma'am." Then she turned to me. "You have to tell me... later." I nodded in agreement. I had almost forgotten that she didn't know that Harry was missing. Then I realized, _Hermione probably doesn't know yet either! I bet Ron knows... or he at least saw that Harry wasn't in bed this morning. He can't be that thick, can he? _

"Class dismissed!" Professor McGonagall called after forty minutes passed.

__

Finally, I thought. I ran back up to the Gryffindor tower and went in the common room. I found the letter, as promised. I opened it up and began to read. I noticed Harry's handwriting again.

__

To whom it may concern:

Looking for someone? I thought as much... if you ever want to see Harry Potter again, go to the Slytherin corridor - the Montague girl will know - at ten o'clock this night. I'm sure you'll be, at least, interested by what you see...

It wasn't signed. I felt a lump in the back of my throat. I knew which corridor this person was talking about... what confused me was that this was in Harry's handwriting... _why? _Well, Harry would be there, obviously... and I knew I had to go. Ten o'clock. I'd have to go being I was the only one who knew where it was.


	13. Reality

****

Chapter Eleven: Reality

__

Later that day...

"Krystal, where's Harry. I know he's gone... but where?"

"I-I don't know." I lied.

"Who has him?"

"I don't know?"

"Well, how'd he disappear?"

"I TOLD YOU EVERYTHING I KNOW!" I shouted. I was getting quite frustrated with her. She was asking the same questions over and over and I already told her everything - aside from the letter.

"OKAY CALM YOURSELF! I'M JUST CURIOUS, IS ALL!"

"IF I KNEW I'D TELL YOU!"

"FINE, KRYSTAL!" She shouted back. I looked up at the clock. 9:45 already.

"Er... I have to go. I'll talk to you later, I guess." She nodded and I ran out.

"Krystal, wait!" She called, but I had already gone. I didn't realize that I left the letter on my bed.

I ran through the corridors in search for some sign of Harry. "Harry!" I called. "Harry!" I looked. He was back... back somewhere in the school... and I'd find him. "Harry! Where are you? Harry!" I got to a certain corridor... I recognized it but hadn't been there in some time. That's when I realized... _This is where he's supposed to be..._

I looked forward into the dark. I walked slowly until some images came into sight. I saw the table to my far left with that always held a vase of roses. Tonight there was only one flower in it. One... dead... rose. The thought alone sent shivers down my spine. I looked ahead of myself again and stopped immediately. I saw some one lying on the floor. He was laying so that his face was turned in the opposite direction. I knew who it was, however.

"HARRY! Oh God... Harry! NO!" I screamed, running towards him. When I reached the limp body I looked down into his face. I was right that it was Harry. "NO! HARRY, NO! PLEASE! HARRY!" I tried with all my might to wake him. I shook him and checked his pulse. He was still alive. He still had a pulse and was still breathing. His face was scuffed up and he had a large cut on his cheek. "Harry... Harry, please!" I said, still shaking him.

"He won't wake up... not now." Said a cold voice.

"W-Who's there?" I asked. My voice was shaky.

"Now, see what happens when you interfere, Krystal?"

"Wh-What?" I was confused. _Who was this? I interfered? With what? _Then, he stepped out from the dark.

"See what happens when you interfere?!" He said in a fiercer voice. My eyes widened and I felt as if I had been stabbed in the back and punched in the throat at the same exact time.

"D-D-"

"Say it."

"Draco?!" I cried. "H-How could you?! HOW COULD YOU DO THIS?!" I was ready to tackle him when I saw another figure step out from the darkness... and another... and another. "Wh-What's going on?"

"We've been expecting you." Said a female voice. She came closer and I recognized her.

"Bridget!" I snapped with a rage. "YOU!"

"Yes me. Oh, come off it! You knew about this... You knew about me."

"If I had known, do you think I'd have allowed it to happen?!" She just shrugged. I noticed the other figures moving closer with their wands at the ready. I didn't know them but I recognized them as Draco's goons. "I can't believe you'd do this Draco... you'd do this to me... to Harry!"

"I didn't do anything to you." He retorted. He didn't have one hint of sympathy or remorse in his look. He was cold. I had never seen him like this. "It was Potter. C'mon, Krystal. You mean after meeting my father, you didn't immediately know that he was a Death Eater?" I gasped. I would've never expected Draco or anyone in his family to be connected to Voldemort. Ok, his father was creepy and cold but... he seemed to like me just fine. I didn't think he could be a Death Eater. The thought never crossed my mind. "Stand aside, Krystal."

"NO!" I snapped, backing up and hovering over Harry as to protect him.

"No?" He asked, as if he'd never heard the word before. "Do you know what we're capable of, Krystal?" I winced, knowing that they could kill me within a second. There was no way of blocking one of the Unforgivable curses. All they had to do were say the words and I'd be dead and then they'd kill Harry.

"I-I'm not scared of you." I lied.

"Hmph!" Bridget scoffed. "Yeah, right! You're shaking!" She joked.

"Stay back!" I shouted as they began to advance. With a simple nod of Draco's head and a call to "Crabbe" and "Goyle", his 'friends' came and pulled me off Harry. There was no use struggling... they were much stronger than I was... but I wouldn't let them get us that easily. I kicked and bit and screamed until my throat was sore. "DRACO! Draco, NO! What did I do to you?! What did HE do?! I WAS YOUR FRIEND! I WAS YOUR FRIEND, DRACO!" I shouted with all my might. "Harry!! Wake up, Harry! Wake up!! Wake while you still can, Harry, PLEASE!" I wailed. "HARRY! HA-" I abruptly stopped when I noticed Draco pointing his wand towards me. Draco's wand was aimed straight for my heart and, no matter how much I struggled, I couldn't break free from Goyle and Crabbe. This was it. "Harry..." I trailed off in a weak and frightened voice.

"Goodbye Krystal."

"YOU SAID YOU LOVED ME! WHAT HAPPENED?! WOULD YOU KILL ME NOW? LIKE THIS? I WAS YOUR FRIEND... YOUR BEST FRIEND... so you said."

"GOODBYE." I turned to say my last goodbye to Harry. I wouldn't die without saying goodbye to him... When I turned to say it and I looked where his body was laid, he was gone.

Draco must have noticed the puzzled look on my face. "What?" He asked, impatiently.

"N-Nothing..." I said, looking back at him. I couldn't see Harry anywhere. _Did he get away? _I asked myself. _He couldn't have! He was so weak... barely conscious! _I looked around. Bridget didn't have him and neither did Crabbe or Goyle. I turned back to Draco with a small feel of triumph. _Okay, I'm going to die... I'm scared to death and ready to cry... but Harry's safe. _And then I thought, _Why would he leave me here?_

Draco shrugged. "Anyway... Goodbye." He stuck up the wand to my shirt and was about to say the spell. I winced in fear. _Please no... God, please, no... _"Avad-" He stopped and I heard a thud. I opened my eyes and saw that Harry was on the floor next to him, fully conscious. He had knocked Draco down from behind. Now it was Draco who laid on the floor, confused and in pain. He landed flat on his head. Bridget was screaming in disappointment and anger and I could hear random grunts from Crabbe and Goyle.

"HARRY!" I shouted with joy. "You're alive! You're okay! Oh, Harry! You're okay!" I squealed. I bent down him and kissed him as if I had to get one hundred kisses from him in less than a minute. He pushed me off as Draco got back up with help from Bridget. He, too, stood up with his wand drawn.

"You'll pay for this one, Malfoy." He said with fury in his voice. I had never seen him like this. He didn't look like the Harry I knew. He was full of anger and the love and passion I loved about him seemed to be drained from his face. All that could be found in his expression was hate. Pure hatred.

Draco snickered. "Hmph! Is that so? Good for you _she_ came along... otherwise I'd have killed you as soon as you were down." Draco said, nodding towards me. Harry snapped his around to look at me. I was in the corner, aiding my ankle that had been twisted by one of Draco's goons. Harry looked at me and I knew he didn't know what to do. He knew what he had to do... but he was outnumbered. I stood up straight and went next to Harry. I took my wand out and pointed it straight for Bridget who was on the other side of the room.

"Don't move!" I hollered. Harry looked at me like I was crazy and tried to push me back.

"Krys, don't! You'll get hurt more..."

"Move it, Harry. This bitch has messed with me for the last time..." I felt Bridget's glare grow deeper into my eyes and I glared back. It was a showdown. Whoever blinked would be dead. Simple as that. Crabbe and Goyle came around the backs of Harry and I. Ready to pounce, Draco and the rest stepped closer, trapping Harry and I in a small circle.

As I was about to turn and see what Harry was planning to do, a loud noise - like the slamming of a door - broke the silence. We all jolted up and around to see who came in the room.

"KRYSTAL!" She called. "KRYSTAL I FOUND THE -" She stopped when she saw us all, wands raised. "...letter." She said meekly. I saw a small smile rise on Goyle's face.

"ROXEANNE, LOOK OUT!" I cried. But it was too late. Goyle had grabbed her at the waist. I lunged at him but Harry held me back, reminding me that four unhappy dark wizards surrounded me. I hated watching her struggle... and she didn't even have her wand with her. Draco must have gotten some kind of idea because his face lit up like a light bulb. _What now?!_ I wondered.

"Goyle! Over there with her... and Bridget...?" He raised his eyebrows as if to hint something. Bridget nodded and turned to Harry.

"Expelliarmus!" She shouted. Harry's wand shot out of his hand and into her own. Then she turned to me. "Expelliarmus!" And my wand flew to her hand as well. Then she looked at Draco. Draco, once again, nodded towards Harry. She walked up to me and pulled me away.

"No! Let go!" I yelled. She was much stronger than I was, as she already proved in our previous fight. Harry struggled to get through to her but Crabbe had him by the ankles.

"Let go, you asshole!" He yelled. "Krystal!"

"Harry! Harry!" I cried.

"Krystal!" I heard Roxeanne call. I couldn't see anything. Bridget blindfolded me.

"Let GO! Let me go!" I shouted. I kicked her, or at least I thought I was kicking her. I was definitely kicking something, but I couldn't see what it was. It was either her legs or the nearest wall. I felt a heavy thud on the back of my head and I must have been knocked out.


	14. Personality of Death

****

Chapter Twelve: Personality of Death

I woke up some time later to realize that I was no longer blindfolded. I stood up and looked around. The hall seemed to be glowing blue. It wasn't the same hall, either. I looked around and I noticed that I'd never been in this corridor before. When I looked to my left, I saw the corridor I had been in before. The one where I fought Bridget and found Harry. I looked to my right into darkness. It seemed to get darker the further to that side that I moved. In the very middle something was emitting a blue glow. I wasn't able to see what it was, though. It seemed like a little round ball but I think it was more than that. I stared closer at it, still and I was walking towards it when it started to grow bigger. It grew to be a bit taller than I am and about two feet wider. It now seemed more like an orb of some kind.

I looked into the blue orb and saw that there were steps leading down from inside. I was debating whether to go in or not. I looked around me and I didn't see anything. I still had the chance to go tell Professor Dumbledore, but I was foolish and curious. _Well, what were they doing to Roxeanne and Harry right now?! _I figured it would be better to go in, because... I was naive. Also, I thought I might be able to help Harry and Roxeanne if they were even down there. I stepped into the blue circled orb and began walking down the transparent steps. They appeared one by one. Everything around me was a bright blue... glowing. I was trembling and extremely frightened but somehow, a part of me felt comfortable.

"Harry?! Roxeanne? YOU DOWN HERE?!" I yelled, hoping somebody... anybody would answer. "Anyone?! Hello?!" I walked a bit farther until I could no longer see where I had entered. I ran back up the steps to make sure I could get back out, and sure enough, I couldn't. "Damn it!" I hissed under my breath. I turned back around and ran down them again. This time I actually ran farther than I had gone before. "HARRY?! ROXEANNE?! WHERE ARE YOU?!"

Soon the staircase ended and I was on a white platform. The surrounding blue area turned black as I walked to the center of the platform. I looked down... all black. I thought the platform was floating. I looked around for some form of life but found none. I tried to get back to the steps when the atmosphere was blue and comforting... now it was dark and black. As I reached my foot out to walk onto the steps, my foot hit what seemed to be a wall. The steps had gone and black walls surrounded me. The white platform wasn't nearly bright enough to light up the whole area, way to the top of wherever I was, but it lit enough for me to see some things around me. I realized, there was nothing around me. It was completely empty. When I was about to give up, a small white light began to shimmer at the very top of, what I'd call, the room.

"Hello?!" I called. "Is anyone up there? Can you see me?!" I yelled, waving my arms vigorously. When I figured there was no one there, I heard a deep, evil laugh. I gasped loudly and jumped to one of the walls. "Who's there?"

From the top of the room, three figures dropped slowly down, as if they were being floated down. "Well, we meet again." The man said. The younger boy next to him chuckled and the girl behind the two of them seemed to have a pure evil smile on her.

"Wh-What do you want?" I asked. I had no idea why, but I'd been feeling quite brave at the time.

"Huh, Krystal... you've got so much to learn about me." The boy said.

"I don't care to learn much more of you, Draco." I told him. "I don't like what I've found." I said, trying as hard as I could not to blink. He didn't say anything in reply, but instead, looked over to his father. His father had a look on his face that was barf-worthy. "What?" I asked, daringly. He, again, didn't reply. He did, however, lift his hands up and clap twice. Almost at once, Draco's friends dropped from the same point they had, carrying two other people who seemed to be quite restless.

"We've got your friends, by the way." My jaw clenched. "I hope you enjoy their new personalities as much as we have." Goyle and Crabbe let go of them, but they were still tied around the stomach, so they couldn't go far. I looked at them hard. It took me a good five minutes to realize that these two wild, reckless people were Harry and Roxeanne. I jumped back.

"WHAT DID YOU DO?!" I shouted. I took a good look at Harry, then Roxeanne. Harry's eyes were red and his hair was wilder than ever. His veins were popping out everywhere and his face was bright red. He looked furious. They were both dressed in black. Harry kept stomping his feet and looked as if he'd break the rope binding him at any moment. Roxeanne's eyes were yellow, rather than red. Her normally curly, bouncy hair had been straightened so it now reached down a few inches past her shoulders. Her face, too, was bright red and she was reaching out with her hands tight, as if trying to reach... me. I realized that they were both looking at me as if I was a piece of meat and they hadn't eaten in weeks. "What's wrong with them?!"

"New personalities... as I said. They're now to do whatever Draco, Bridget or myself ask of them. I must warn you, only one spell will work on them and its not a very nice one."

"You expect me to use that on them?! ARE YOU MAD?!"

"Goyle! Crabbe!" Draco called. "Release them."

"What the -" I started. I would've finished but Roxeanne had seized me by the hair and was now practically ripping it out of my head. "ROXEANNE! BLOODY HELL! GET OFF!" I shouted. I think she was determined to make me bald. She wouldn't stop tugging until Lucius put his hand up as if to stop her. She let go, with a big sigh from me, but it wasn't over.

"Like your new friends?" He said, laughing.

"What the hell is your problem?!" I screamed. "You're... you're CRAZY!"

"Crazy? Really? Well, let's see... here I have Harry Potter and your best friend at my command ready to rip you apart with my call... and I'm crazy? Oh, yes, I see what you mean." He said sarcastically.

I scoffed. I didn't think Harry and Roxeanne could ever even look so... intimidating. So... frightening. I tried my best to talk to them and make them understand. "Harry! Harry, hold still!" I said, grabbing him by the shoulders. "Harry, look! Look at me! It's me! Krystal!! Remember?!" But he, obviously, didn't remember. He didn't even recognize me. He seized my hands with his own and flipped me over. I cried out in pain. I heard my already sprained ankle crack and I realized it was probably broken.

"Roxeanne! Roxeanne, please! Please, this is me! ITS ME!" I shouted, but she too, didn't recognize me. I drew out my wand, but quickly put it back into my robes.

"Go on..." Lucius tempted me. "Say the spell. It's the only way to win."

"YOU WON'T MAKE ME KILL THEM, YOU LOON!"

"Tsk, tsk, tsk... alright. Then you'll just have to... die."

"What? STOP! FIX THEM!" I shouted while trying to stay as far away from Roxeanne and Harry.

"Sorry... can't. I seem to have forgotten my wand." He told me. He forgot his wand... he didn't have his wand! I turned to him with a smirk. I pointed my wand straight at him.

"AVADA KEDAVRA!" I yelled. At the exact same moment, Harry jumped in front of my wand. "HARRY!" I yelled, watching him fall to the floor. Slowly, the black walls faded.

"Thank you, Krystal... for finishing my job for me." As the entire setting seemed to fade, so did Draco, Bridget and Lucius Malfoy. Everything seemed to rewind back up the stairs, through the blue orb and leaving me, Roxeanne and Harry in the corridor we had started in.


	15. Coming Into Focus

****

Chapter Thirteen: Coming Into Focus

"KRYSTAL!" Roxeanne yelled. She seemed to be back to her normal self. It wasn't a yell of surprise but one of anger. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?! KRYSTAL, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!"

I was still facing forward, looking at Harry's body lying dead at my feet. My wand was pointed up, ahead of me and I was looking down. My hand allowed my wand to slip out and fall to the ground. "H-H-Harry..." I said weakly, trembling. "Harry, please. Please, no! NO! HARRY!" I cried. I allowed the tears to stream down my face. "Harry... come back! Harry come back!" I yelled hoarsely. "Please... please, no! HARRY!" I cried over him. I turned him over so he'd be face up. I placed my hand on his forehead and brushed back his hair away from his face. His eyes were open still and I looked into them. "Oh, God... oh, God."

"WHAT DID YOU DO, KRYSTAL?!" Roxeanne was still shouting. "HOW COULD YOU?!" She said. I could tell by her voice that she was crying too.

"What did I do? I-I- Oh my God." I said. "Harry. Harry oh, Harry. God, no!" I prayed. "Please, Harry... please..." I still begged that he'd come back, although I knew it couldn't happen. "R-Roxeanne." I said, turning to her. "Roxeanne... help." I begged. She looked at me as though I frightened her. She slowly backed away and then turn and ran away.

"PROFESSOR DUMBLEDORE! PROFESSOR!" I heard her yell.

"Roxeanne PLEASE!" I shouted after her, but she wasn't there anymore. I turned back to Harry, my face soaked with tears. "Oh, God what have I done? God, no... Harry... I'm sorry... I'm sorry, Harry, please... Please, I'm sorry..." I whispered repetitively. "Harry, Harry, Harry.... no..." I sat there rocking over him. "Don't... Don't leave me this way. I can't survive without your love, oh Harry... Don't leave me this way. I love you, Harry... please..." I said, still hoping for something. Of course, there was no response. My whole body shook as I put my hand up and closed his eyes. I lifted him up so I could hold him for one last time. "I love you." I whispered into his hair. "I'll always be with you... and I will love you until the end of time." I laid him back down nicely. "G-G-G- oh, I can't... I can't say 'Goodbye'... I just... can't." I said, shaking my head. "But... this is... Goodbye, Harry." I said, leaning over to give him just one last kiss. "I'll always be with you." I said again. "Goodbye..." I said, now sobbing. I sat there waiting for Roxeanne to return with Professor Dumbledore.

Suddenly a figure, not a person, crept out of the darkness. The darkness itself laid over Harry and made him almost impossible to see. "NO!" I shouted, grabbing Harry by the ankles. "STOP! NO!" I cried. The figure of darkness threw me back against the wall and left with Harry's body. At that precise second after the figure and Harry had vanished, Filch came down carrying his lantern, followed by Professor Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall and Professor Snape.

"Professors!" I sobbed. "He's dead! HE'S DEAD!" I cried at their feet. "And he's GONE!"

"She did it Professor! She's killed him!" Roxeanne said, still crying. I looked up at her helplessly. "I saw it..."

I jumped up. "YOU WERE HYPNOTISED OR SOMETHING! THEY ATTACKED ME, PROFESSOR! I DIDN'T MEAN TO HIT HARRY! I WAS AIMING FOR LUCIUS!"

"Lucius?" Snape asked.

"Yes, sir. It was him... and Draco and a Slytherin girl... Bridget."

"Headmaster, shall I go fetch Draco from his dormitory."

"He wouldn't be there now, Severus." Dumbledore told him. "He's left with his father."

"We don't know it was truly him, Headmaster."

"I've been suspecting Draco and Lucius to be working something dangerous... I only wished I had realized sooner."

"Professors!" Roxeanne spoke up. "I SAW HER KILL HIM! She said the spell and hit Harry!"

"BUT I DIDN'T MEAN TO HIT HARRY, YOU GIT! WHY'D I WANT TO KILL HARRY?"

"Who knows?! I don't know what's been on your mind these days! I found that letter, Krystal! Yeah, I found it. It says they found his body and you were already there with him!"

"IT WAS DRACO! ROXEANNE STOP!"

"YOU KILLED HIM!"

"I DID!"

All the teachers stopped dead. "W-What was that Miss Montague?" Professor McGonagall asked.

"I did kill him Professor." I told them, starting to cry again. "But I NEVER meant to! I swear it! I'd never want to hurt Harry! Lucius told me that the only spell that would work on Harry and Roxeanne to stop them from attacking me, since they had 'new personalities' thanks to the Malfoys, was 'Avada Kedavra'. I refused to use it though! I wouldn't kill them! I'd sooner kill myself! But then Lucius told me he didn't have his wand and I pointed the spell towards him!"

"Then how is it, Miss Montague, that Mr. Potter is now... dead? And where is his body now?" Snape asked cautiously.

"He jumped in front of me! He just flew out of nowhere! So, yes, I did kill him. But I didn't mean to! He's dead now and... it's my fault entirely. But... oh, I wish he were here... alive. I swear only a few minutes ago his body was here... something dragged him away!" I said, beginning to cry again.


	16. Best of a Friend

****

Chapter Fourteen: Best of Friend

"Now, now, Krystal." Professor Dumbledore said. "Why don't you go to Madame Pomfrey? She'll give you something to help you sleep tonight. Roxeanne, you may go, too, if you wish. We'll search for Harry tonight. You should know though, that we'll be questioning you tomorrow morning."

"Yes, sir." I replied, at a loss for words. I turned back to look at where Harry's body had been. "I'm sorry." I whispered again.

"Come, now." Professor McGonagall spoke up. I nodded and Roxeanne followed me. I felt her staring daggers into my back.

"Good going." Roxeanne whispered.

"What are you talking about?" I asked, puzzled.

"I saw you kill him!" She hissed. I gritted my teeth and began massaging my temples. I felt a horrible migraine coming on.

"I'll tell you later, okay?!"

"Whatever."

"This way, ladies." McGonagall pointed us to the hospital wing. "I have to speak with Madame Pomfrey. Go sit there for now." We nodded and followed her instructions.

"Well?" Roxeanne said in an impatient voice. "What happened, then?! I saw the letter!"

"Okay... I'll tell you. I'll tell you everything, alright?" She nodded. "It started the other night. Harry and I went to the owlry and somebody took him. I couldn't really see anything." I continued the entire story, including when I met Sirius, when I got the letter, and what happened in the 'orb'. "I don't know if you heard while you had that... personality... but Lucius told me he didn't have his wand. So, I thought I'd kill him while I had the chance. I pointed the spell towards him, Roxeanne, I swear. Harry jumped in front of me right after I said the spell." I finished the story, looking down with tears in my eyes.

I looked up at Roxeanne again and I wasn't sure what she was thinking. After almost six years of our friendship I found myself feeling very awkward with this new type of silence. It wasn't an understanding silence or a sad silence. It was a silence where we both were actually at al loss for words. I didn't know what she was thinking and I doubt she could ever know the things going on in my mind. We just sat there. She finally spoke up.

"Why should I believe you?"

I gaped at her. "Because this is me! Damn, Roxeanne! Why would I want Harry, my boyfriend, dead?! This is ME! You've got to believe me! You just... have to!"

"I want to believe you, Krystal. Really, I do."

"But you don't..."

"I can't."

"I don't get it. Don't you trust me? Seriously - we've been friends for how long now? Six years?"

"I know but I just -"

"You just WHAT?"

"Nothing..."

"Tell me."

"I know what I saw, okay? I saw you kill Harry. How can I believe what you're saying when I saw just the opposite?"

"Because you were brainwashed! Or something like that... I don't know what it was exactly. I told you how you were. I mean, yellow eyes... growling and... you were scary, Roxeanne. You both were."

"Which would just give you another reason to kill Harry! If not me!"

"ROXEANNE! LISTEN TO YOURSELF!" I said, practically shaking her by the shoulders.

Roxeanne slowly sat down, not looking at me. "Oh my God. Oh. My. God. Krystal... Krystal do you see what's happening here?"

"Er..."

"Draco! Draco's doing this all! He's been planning this for... God only knows how long! It's his fault Harry's dead and now look. Now... we don't even have his body and you and I are going at each other's throats about whether or not you killed Harry! You! I'm sorry. I- I don't know why... HOW I could think you killed Harry... YOU! I don't know what's wrong with me lately... I'm so confused. I just feel like... ever since that fight with you and Harry, you and I haven't been as close. I know it's true. We haven't. I feel like you don't tell me anything anymore... you don't trust me. You didn't talk to me while you and Harry were fighting. You didn't tell me about the letter in Harry's handwriting and you didn't tell me that Harry was missing. I had to find all this out on my own and I want to know what's happening between us!"

I sat there, once again, at a loss for words. My throat felt dry and scratchy. "Roxeanne..." I cleared my throat and spoke again. "Roxeanne... I know." I hugged her and everything felt okay again. She understood... she really did. Or maybe, she just seemed to understand. I wasn't sure and I don't think she was either. "I'm sorry. I don't want us to grow apart. I know I haven't told you everything that I could've but I thought it was for the best! I mean, would you really have wanted to know that Harry was missing and was nowhere to be found? Would you really want to know that his body was lying in some hallway?" I asked her, my voice starting to crack. "I didn't even want to know! I didn't want you to feel what I was feeling. I didn't want anyone to feel what I was feeling because I never felt so horrible before."

"It was worse not speaking to you about it than not knowing about it. I've always talked to you... about everything. And, it hurt when I realized you weren't telling me everything."

"I'm sorry."

"I am too."

"For what?" I wondered.

"Not believing you... Friends?"

I smiled. "Best friends."


	17. Room of Torture and Delight

****

Chapter Fifteen: Room of Torture and Delight

I gave her a hug and turned around at the sound of Professor McGonagall's voice.

"So then you understand what I'm saying? You know what this means?" I had silenced both Roxeanne and myself to listen to what McGonagall and Madame Pomfrey had to say.

"Yes, Minerva. I understand completely. With Potter gone, well..."

"Yes. Yes, I know. We don't know what might happen." The professor told the nurse. I turned to Roxeanne and saw that she was listening as closely as I was.

"Are you hearing this?" I whispered to her. She only nodded. "I never thought about what could happen with him... gone. You-know-who might rise again!"

"No kidding! Hush! Here they come." We both turned to different positions and were trying hard to make it look as if we weren't listening.

"Here you are ladies." Said Madame Pomfrey as she handed us two glasses filled with a yellow, mucky liquid.

"What's this?" Roxeanne asked in disgust.

"You want to sleep tonight? Then drink!" She said, shoving the glasses in our faces.

"Ugh... alright." I said, slowly drinking it. "Oh! This is so disgusting!" It tasted like swallowing your own vomit... only worse.

Roxeanne nodded in agreement, almost gagging, having just swallowed down hers.

"Right. Now, up to bed, both of you. That'll kick in quick." We both nodded and headed up to the Gryffindor Tower. "Now, Minerva. What does Dumbledore have to say about all this?" That was the last thing I heard as Roxeanne and I walked farther away from the hospital wing.

"Roxeanne..." I yawned. "Did you hear them?"

She yawned too. "Yeah. You think something'll happen?" She slurred.

I just shrugged, much too tired to respond. I walked up the staircase with one arm holding me up, slumping on the railing. "This... sleeping stuff works... fast." I said, leaning back one of the walls. "Hold on a minute."

"What?"

"Just... wait. I'm tired."

"Me too. Let's get to bed, then!" She said, turning around to look at me. "Ugh. Krystal!" She shouted, seeing me asleep on the floor. "Wonderful," she spoke to herself. "Just perfect." She tried to drag me off. The common room entrance wasn't too far off. She was just as tired as I was though, and fell to the floor asleep.

Some time later, I awoke in a strictly black and white based room. One side of the room was emitting a bright, white light. The side that I was on with Roxeanne was much darker, though. I looked down and noticed that I was no longer in my school robes, but in a white outfit that resembled that of a painter. I saw Roxeanne was wearing the same thing.

"Pst! Roxeanne!" I hissed, nudging her arm. "Wake up. C'mon!" I stood up and brushed off the clothes I had on as Roxeanne started to wake up. As soon as she opened her eyes she realized that we shouldn't be there. She jerked up right away.

"Wha-" She began, but I cupped my hand over her mouth. I was staring at the other side of the room that was so bright that it felt like I was staring into the sun. Although it was near impossible to see over there, I did notice something - or some one.

"You see that?" I asked her in a hushed voice. She moved forward more and I noticed she had to squint as well.

"What is that? Or... who?"

"I think it's a person. Look at the shape of the... er... body." I pointed. The only reason we could see, even a vague shape, was because although the light around the person was bright, he or she was wearing a black outfit. I was still pointing but immediately lowered my hand when I saw that the person was moving. "What's it doing?"

Roxeanne rolled her eyes. "It's walking. Calm down."

"Easy for you to say. Nothing ever scares you!" It was true, as well. Roxeanne was so much braver than myself in so many ways.

"Not true. Just calm down 'cause you're getting me nervous, alright?!" She hollered in an anxious voice.

"Hello?" The other person spoke. It was a boy.

"Oh good job! He heard you!" I hissed at her.

"Hello?" He asked again.

"H-Hello?" I said in a meek voice. I cleared my throat and spoke louder. "Hello? Who's there?" The boy moved forward, to about halfway across the room. He was squinting to see through the darkness just as we were squinting to see through the light.

"I won't hurt you." He assured us. _I know that voice_, I thought. _Oh my God... I-It can't be, can it?!_

"H-H-Harry?" I asked in a very unsure voice.

"Krystal?!" The boy called back.

"HARRY!" I yelled, running forward. I was about four feet away from him when I ran into something that caused me to fall. "What the hell?" I stood up again and put my hand out ahead of me. There was some kind of barrier - maybe a clear wall - that was stopping me from going any farther. I put both of my hands up on the glass. I could see Harry perfectly now and I just stood there, gaping at him. "Y-You're alive." I said. I could see him but I couldn't believe it. "You're alive! Roxeanne!" I called her over. "Roxeanne! It's Harry! He's alive, Roxeanne! He's alive!"

"Harry?" She asked in amazement. She walked forward, too. "Oh my God! Harry!" She said, slamming on the invisible wall ahead trying to get his attention.

"I can see you!" He shouted. "What happened?!" I was in tears.

"Are you okay?!" I asked.

"I'm fine! Are you? What happened? How'd you get here? How'd I get here?!" He asked us.

"I don't know! We fell asleep! Harry - you were dead! What's going on? How are you... here?"

"I don't know! The last thing I remember was... seeing a white light. I heard some people fighting - a real struggle and then I was knocked out. I woke up here." He said. It sounded as if he was still wondering what had really happened. "Er - Krys? Er, well, Malfoy is here. He told me... Well, he told me that you -" He paused and took a breath in. "That you tried to kill me."

"Oh, no. Harry, I tried killing Lucius! I swear I'd never want to hurt you! You jumped ahead of me and the spell hit you!" I took a few minutes explaining what had happened. Harry, much like Roxeanne, didn't remember anything that happened while having his temporary dark side. Almost immediately after I finished explaining, a cold rush of air came sweeping into the room. Looking up, I could tell that Harry felt it, too.

"What was that?" Roxeanne breathed.

"I don't know." I said, shrugging. I looked around and saw nothing different. "Harry, you felt that?" I asked him.

"Yeah." He said quietly. "What was it?" As soon as he said these words, Draco Malfoy stepped out. It looked as if he was walking right out from one of the walls.


	18. Fatal

****

Chapter Sixteen: Fatal

"Malfoy!" Harry growled, gritting his teeth. "MALFOY, GET YOUR ARSE OVER HERE BECAUSE I'M GONNA KILL YOU!" He shouted, banging at the invisible wall in front of him. "I SWEAR TO YOU MALFOY! YOU'LL PAY FOR ALL THIS!" I'd never seen Harry so enraged.

"Shut up, Potter. I'll deal with you when I'm good and ready. First, to you." He said, turning to Roxeanne and I.

"What do you want, Malfoy?" I asked in a threatening voice. I had never called him Malfoy before. It was always Draco... but Draco wasn't there anymore. This wasn't the boy I knew. This wasn't my friend. This was Malfoy. That disgusting name and that's what he was. He was _Malfoy._

"I want you out of the way..." He told us. "Once and for all!"

"Oh really? Well how do you expect to do that, hmm? Incase you haven't noticed, you're outnumbered."

"Hmph. That won't stop me. You just wait."

"Oh, please!" I said. I had no idea where this sudden wave of bravery was coming from. Even Roxeanne and Harry were looking at me in amazement. I walked as close as I could get to him. "Bring your worst." I challenged.

"Krys, be careful." Harry warned me.

"C'mon Krystal. He's not worth it." Roxeanne tried to calm me down, but there was no stopping me now. I had crossed the line and I wasn't going back.

"Shush!" I snapped at them. "What's the matter? You're looking a bit pale, Malfoy."

"You have no idea what you're doing, Krystal." He told me. "You have no idea who you're dealing with. Harry would be dead now if it was up to me, and you'd be too. My orders, however, come from a much stronger power. I'm still amazed to see Harry alive, but I was able to get him once again. If your precious Potter can't even beat me, how do you expect to? Hmmm?!"

I just glared at him. His own stare was beating down on my eyes but I refused to let myself blink. It was almost as if the first person to blink was the loser. It was a staring contest... and I wouldn't lose again.

"You can't beat me Krystal. You know, this is your own fault."

"Leave them alone, Malfoy!" Harry shouted. "You don't want them - you want me. So leave them alone."

"It's your own damned fault that she's down here, you know." Malfoy recoiled.

"WHO'S TO BLAME FOR ALL THE STUPID THINGS I NEVER SAID?!" I hollered at him. "NONE OF THIS IS HARRY'S FAULT! DON'T LISTEN TO HIM HARRY!" I shouted. But Harry paid no attention to me.

"He's right." He whispered. "You're right, Malfoy." I saw a wide smile spread on Draco's face.

"NO! NO HARRY! DON'T SAY THAT!" I screeched. It was almost like Harry was surrendering to him by saying that.

"It's the truth. If- If it weren't for me, you wouldn't be here." He told me.

"NO! Roxeanne! Roxeanne, help! Tell him he's wrong!" I begged of her.

"Harry, that's not true!" She shouted. "It's not your fault! None of it is!"

I turned to Draco, gritting my teeth. He was enjoying this. He had found Harry's weak point. Harry always blamed himself. "You know what else was your fault, Potter?" Harry looked away from Draco. He looked at me and I could see him asking for help.

"Stop it, Malfoy!" I said in a shaky voice. But he ignored me.

"Your mother." I let out a loud gasp. I heard the same from Roxeanne, standing behind me.

"You asshole." I whispered to him as I watched Harry. Harry's face drained of all color.

"Wh-What?" Harry asked.

"Harry - IGNORE HIM!"

"What did you say?" He asked again.

"That's right, Potter. Your mother. She died and it's your fault, you know." Harry stared at the floor. He wasn't blinking. I couldn't think of a thing to say. "Lord Voldemort wasn't after her. It was you. You and your father were who he was after. Your stupid mudblood of a mother could've lived if she hadn't tried to protect you." Harry fell to his knees.

I banged on the clear wall in front of me. "MALFOY! YOU'RE A LIAR! HARRY DON'T LISTEN TO HIM!" But my shouting wasn't helping at all. Harry's eyes were now red and glassy. He looked sick. "Harry, get up! DON'T LISTEN! THIS IS WHAT HE WANTS! NONE OF IT IS YOUR FAULT, HARRY!"

"And I've got a little surprise for you." Malfoy told Harry. Then he walked out of the room.

"Harry..." I started. Roxeanne stopped me. I just looked at him helplessly. Soon after, something draped down in the area between Harry's side of the room and our side. We couldn't see his side of the room anymore. "Harry?!" I called frantically. I didn't want to lose him again.

"Krys? Roxeanne? You guys okay?"

"Yeah! We're fine!" Roxeanne shouted back. "What is this?"

" I don't-" Harry's voice stopped.

"Harry?" I asked. "Harry?!" I banged on the wall ahead of us, although it was nearly impossible to see now. Whatever had draped through the middle of the room was also blocking out all the light from Harry's side. "Roxeanne, where are you?" I called to the back of the room.

"Right here." She told me. I felt a hand reach out and grab my robes. "That you?"

"Yeah. What's going on though? Harry?!" I called again. No answer. Only a few seconds later did we hear an ear piercing scream coming from Harry's side of the room.

"HARRY?!" Roxeanne and I both shouted. "HARRY! HARRY WHAT IS IT?!"

"No! St-Stay away!" I heard Harry's voice call. I had never heard him sound so scared. The whole room went cold. "E-E-Expec- Expecto patronum!" He shouted. "Expecto- Expecto patronum!"

"What's he doing?"

"I don't know."

"EXPECTO PATRONUM! EXPECTO-" I heard a loud thud. At first I thought Harry had collapsed but then I heard him speak again. He sounded weaker. "- p-patro- patronum! Expecto..." Whatever was behind the 'wall' with Harry must have been getting closer. "S-Stay back!" He croaked. "N-No... please..." I thought I heard him crying. "Mum?" He asked in a weak, somewhat frightened voice. "N-No. Expecto... patronum." He was speaking slower and slower and sounded even more frightened. "Mum... no! Expecto... patr-" And there was another, louder thud. I listened to hear for Harry's voice again, but he didn't speak.

There was silence until a loud, sucking noise was echoing through the walls. It sounded like a hissing vacuum sucking up only air. Roxeanne realized what was going on. "IT'S A DEMENTOR!"

"What?!"

"A DEMENTOR! STOP IT! IF WE DON'T STOP IT, IT'LL PERFORM THE KISS!"

"Are you sure?!" I screamed, panicking.

"I've heard them! In Azkaban! When I went to visit mum! THEY PERFORMED THE KISS! It was horrible! That poor man... no one deserves that! It's worse than death! STOP IT! Er... Think- THINK OF HAPPY THOUGHTS! It'll be attracted over this way! C'MON KRYSTAL! THINK HARD!"

Roxeanne would've known better than anyone what the Kiss would sound like. She visited her mum a few times every year in Azkaban. She used to tell me what it was like there and after she came back, it took her a few days to seem normal again. She told me how the people there were... driven insane by dementors. I never asked why her mother was there and she never brought it up. But for some one to receive the Kiss from a dementor most definitely was a fate worse than death and I wouldn't let that happen to Harry.

I thought of the happiest memory I had... the day I got my Hogwarts letter. That was definitely one of my happiest memories. I concentrated on it hard. "What was Harry saying? That... er... spell?"

"Expect patron?" She took a guess.

"Something like that... think... think... c'mon." The sucking noise was getting lower. "IT'S GOING FOR HIM! THINK OF YOUR HAPPY THOUGHT!" Before I could think of the spell that Harry was using, another voice had shouted it so loudly that it rang through my ears long after he finished saying it. A bright silver light shimmered through the room, mainly closer to Harry's side of the room. It took a strange shape and I couldn't really tell what it was.


	19. Moonshine

****

Chapter Seventeen: Moonshine

"WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?" I screamed over the noise. The dementor was making a very disturbing shrieking noise that mixed horribly with the scream from the random man with the wonderful patronus. On top of that Roxeanne and I were screaming in fright. "Roxeanne?!"

  
"Krystal?!" She cried. The light from the patronus was illuminating the entire room, even the darkest corner of our side. I crawled over to Roxeanne. We were both on our knees in the corner of the room. Neither of us had ever seen a patronus before. It took the form of some animal and frankly, I was scared the animal might attack. I had no idea where the man who shouted it out was or if he was on our side or Draco's. Roxeanne and I cowered in fear as the light from the patronus faded. The loud sucking noise was gone. The dementor had fled. The only noise now was that of loud breathing. Roxeanne and I were breathing short and shaky and then I heard the rough, hoarse breathing of the man. I didn't hear Harry, though.

"H-Harry?" Roxeanne called into the darkness. "Hello?" She didn't hear him either. "Who's there?"

"He's passed out." Said the man, out of breath.

"Who are you?" I called. The man didn't answer. Instead he pulled away what I now recognized as a black curtain. This was the thing that draped between the room, blocking the light. An immense ray of light shone on us that only showed the outline of a tall man carrying Harry in his arms.

"HARRY!" I gasped, cupping my hand over my mouth. "Put him down!"

"You'd rather him be killed?" I didn't respond. "I'm here to help. Trust me."

"Should we?" I asked Roxeanne.

  
"What choice do we have?" Was her response. She was staring blankly at the man.

"Fine. Who are you?"

"Can't tell you that. Not now, at least. I'm going to get Harry out of here. That dementor did some job on him... I'll be back for you." Roxeanne and I nodded, still in the corner in fright. The man ran into what looked like a wall - but it obviously wasn't. He walked right through it and he definitely wasn't a ghost.

"He left." I said in amazement. "He just _left_!"

"And he took Harry." Roxeanne added, still staring where the man was just standing.

I scoffed. "How'd he get out? Who _was_ that?!" I asked, still amazed. Roxeanne shrugged. "Let's get out of here."

"How do you plan to do that?" She asked with a hint of sarcasm in her voice. I shot her a look.

"I'll _look_ for a way out!" I said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "I mean, _he_ got out, didn't he?"

"_He_ obviously had a plan! We just got thrown in here!"

I waved an impatient hand at her. "Uh-huh. Sure. Just help me look for a way to get out of here."

She scoffed. "Whatever you say, Krystal." I wasn't listening to her. I was feeling my way up and down the surrounding walls looking for a gap or something I'd be able to get out through. "He said he'd be back. Maybe we should just wait."

"For all we know that man was working for the Malfoys!"

"He stopped the dementor though."

"Roxeanne, there are about a million and a half reasons dark wizards have to kill Harry. Who cares who he was working for? The fact is that Harry is gone and we don't know who the hell he's with. I'm getting out of here before that guy comes back for us. C'mon. If we just sit waiting, who knows what might happen to Harry?"

She nodded in agreement. I let out a contented sigh feeling very satisfied that I convinced her to see things my way, for once. I was never any good at that. We searched hopelessly on every inch of the walls surrounding us.

"This is ridiculous." Roxeanne finally spoke up.

"There's no way out... is there?" I looked at her and she shook her head.

"Certainly looks that way, doesn't it?" She looked slowly around the room. "**UGH!** I can't take this any more!" Then she turned back to me. 

"Oh!" My eyes widened.

"What?" She asked, sounding annoyed. I was looking and feeling very uncomfortable.

"Er... hell of a time, but..." I crossed my legs.

"ARE YOU _KIDDING _ME?!" She shouted.

*Ahem!* _Meanwhile_... Remus Lupin laid the unconscious Harry Potter down on the grass after finding his way out of The Room, as he had come to call it.  
  
"Harry!" He hissed, nudging Harry's arm. After doing this a few times, Harry began to wake up.

"Oh..." He moaned. "Wha? Where am I?" He asked, looking up at the night sky. The moon shone down right on his face. Then Harry looked to his left and saw his old Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, Remus Lupin. "Lupin?! Professor Lupin?" He asked in amazement. He tried to sit up but did this too quickly and fell back to the ground.

"Catch your breath. Have some chocolate." He offered a big chunk of chocolate to Harry. "I'd almost forgotten the effect they had on you... the dementors." Harry shuddered. "Who were the girls down in that room with you?"

Harry's eyes widened and he spit out the chocolate, jumping to his feet. "Krystal and Roxeanne!" He shouted, smacking himself on his forehead. "We have to go back for them! We have to go... now! Draco! He'll kill them if he gets the chance!"

Lupin looked near frightened at Harry's unexpected reaction. "Harry! Calm yourself! Malfoy was after _you_, not them."

"You didn't hear what he said, though!"

"We'll get them... I promise." Lupin put his hand on Harry's shoulder and all at once the area got darker than it had been. Lupin scoffed. "Damn clouds... blocking the moon."

"M-Moon?" Harry asked cautiously.

"Don't worry. The full moon is _tomorrow_ night, I believe." He chuckled and it got lighter again. "Let's go get the girls."

"How?"

"Er... Well, I got out over here." Lupin headed towards an extremely grassy area that had a trap door of some kind on the ground.

"Here?" Harry asked, about to open the door. Lupin didn't answer. "Um... sir?" Harry looked up at him. Remus had froze just a few feet away from Harry.

"Go." He said flatly. He told him again, "Go." It got lighter out. Harry looked above Lupin only to see... the full moon shining brighter than ever.

"You said it was tomorrow!" Lupin started shaking. He grabbed Harry's shoulder.

"Go. Get the girls. Don't come back this way. GO!" He shouted, forcing Harry down the trap door. Harry could hear him let out a cry of pain that slowly turned into a howl. He remembered that transforming into a werewolf was very painful, according to Lupin. Harry was shaken from his thoughts with the sound of claws scratching at the trap door above him. He was under the ground now, surrounded by walls of dirt and he slowly followed what looked like a path. His goal now was to find his way back to The Room.


	20. Behind Enemy Lines

Author Notes: I've edited this chapter - only the ending though. Just read the last few paragraphs and you'll see what I mean.  
  
Chapter 18: Behind Enemy Lines  
  
Roxeanne and I sat in The Room - I still had my legs crossed - waiting for a hero of some sort. I heard voices at a distance and they were getting closer.  
  
"How much longer are we going to have to sit here?" Roxeanne asked in a whiny voice. "I mean, the man did say he'd be back!"  
  
"Shush!" I snapped. "Listen." The voices got closer every second. I soon recognized each voice. One was Draco's. The other was Lucius Malfoy's and the last one was Bridget's.  
  
They were soon close enough for me to over hear their conversation. "Oh, brilliant job Draco!" Bridget said angrily. "You've let Harry escape once again!"  
  
"Shut the hell up! You were supposed to be guarding the exit, anyway!"  
  
"Both of you shut your mouths before I do it for you." Lucius spoke up. "Where are the girls?"  
  
"Still in there." Bridget said.  
  
"And Potter?" He asked. Draco looked at Bridget and Bridget looked back at Draco. Neither of them said anything. "Find him." Lucius said in a furious voice that reminded me horribly of Professor Snape's.  
  
"I'll do that, father."  
  
"And I'll guard the girls."  
  
"I'll be waiting." Lucius said. I heard Bridget walk away. "And Draco," He called. "Don't disappoint me again."  
  
"Yes, father."  
  
Then I turned to Roxeanne. "Please tell me I'm hearing things." I begged.  
  
"He'll kill him! Harry hasn't got his wand!" Roxeanne cried. I nodded. "We've got to do something Krystal! Don't just sit there nodding!"  
  
"Well what do you want me to do?! There aren't exactly very many options here are there?" Roxeanne looked as if she was about to say something else but a deafening growl came over the entire place.  
  
"POTTER!" Roxeanne and I gasped. I was about to get up when I heard another shout, just as loud as the first.  
  
"MALFOY!" Now I bolted up.  
  
"HARRY!"  
  
"Krystal?" Roxeanne asked.  
  
"KRYSTAL!?" Harry shouted. "ROXEANNE?!"  
  
"POTTER!" Malfoy shouted again. "Potter." He said, calmer. They were right next to the room, but we couldn't see them.  
  
"Malfoy." Harry said calmly, as to acknowledge his presence. "Let them go." He said sternly.  
  
"No. I think I'll keep them here for the time being, thank you very much."  
  
"Let them go." He said. His voice was growing fierce.  
  
"You've always got to be the hero, don't you Potter? Can't ever let things go. Always have to save the day. Its been that way since you were a baby and now, once again, you live up to your name. Famous Harry Potter. That's what the world will always see you as, you know. The 'boy who lived' will always save the day... until I'm through with you." Draco was trying to talk him down again, like he had right before he let out the dementor.  
  
"Shut up, Malfoy. You're nothing but a lap dog for your father. At least if I can save someone tonight, I'll be happy with myself. You, though... you'll never be happy. Because all you do is run around doing your father's dirty work. You'll never be happy... You'll never be accepted. You'll always be a rat." Harry attempted to keep this a magic-free fight for as long as possible. He was, after all, without his wand. It was too late, though. Draco immediately reached for his wand.  
  
Bridget allowed a wide smile to spread on her face. "Do it." She muttered. "Now. Do it now!" She was saying to herself, as if Draco could hear her. It was almost as if he could because as soon as she said that, he shouted a curse.  
  
"PETRIFICUS TOTALUS!" Draco shouted. I heard a thud that I knew must have been Harry's body. I closed my eyes as though I had a headache. Then I heard Bridget speak up.  
  
"You petrified him?! You could've killed him! What's wrong with you?!"  
  
"Lord Voldemort wants him alive. You heard him."  
  
"Well that's just ridiculous, isn't it? He wants Potter alive... so he can kill him! Why can't we just kill him while we've got him?!"  
  
"DON'T QUESTION YOUR MASTER!"  
  
"Some master." She scoffed. "The boy he wants killed is in his grasp again but he won't let us take care of it!"  
  
"Don't make me kill you." He said casually. I tried to hold back a laugh and Roxeanne looked at me like I was crazy.  
  
"You're laughing?" She asked in disbelief. "What the hell is so funny? Harry is petrified and they're about to take him to You-Know-Who!"  
  
I sobered immediately. "I don't know... Don't look at me like that!"  
  
"We've got to get out of here!" I nodded in agreement. "DRACO!" Roxeanne shouted, banging on one of the walls. "DRACO GET OVER HERE!" She was furious. I joined her. We both called him over but he ignored us. We knew he could hear us but chose not to answer. "Damn it! We're stuck here for God knows how long!"  
  
Outside of the Room, I could hear Bridget and Draco struggling to carry Harry. "We can't let them do this!"  
  
"But what could we do?"  
  
"... We can't do anything!" I moaned. Draco and Bridget were successfully getting away with Harry and they were going to Lord Voldemort, obviously. I looked around for a moment, and it hit me.  
  
"You realize what this is, don't you?" I asked Roxeanne.  
  
"What? What are you talking about?"  
  
"This." I said, waving my hand around the room. "We're in a cage." Roxeanne's eyes widened.  
  
"Oh God. And we can't do one bloody thing."  
  
"We're trapped." I slumped down in a corner. "This sucks." She nodded in agreement. I stood up again though, because Draco and Bridget were walking through the room carrying a body that could only belong to Harry. They just stood in front of us, outside of the walled in area so that they could get out of the room easily.  
  
Draco turned to Bridget, completely ignoring our presence. "Deal with them." He told her, nodding towards the two of us. "I'll take Potter."  
  
"Where?" She asked. I was thinking the same thing.  
  
"Don't you know?" He asked her in amazement. "You know where Lord Voldemort is staying, don't you?" She shook her head. He chuckled. "Well, perhaps its best that you don't yet. I'll be back to get you. Do what you want with the two of them." He smirked and walked away with Harry. Bridget stood in the middle of the room.  
  
"Too bad. You won't get to say goodbye." She said with fake pity in her voice. I knew she was right though. It was too late to do anything. Harry was long gone.  
  
Lucius Malfoy had come out of the Room and was headed for the Dark Forest. He tried his hardest to ignore the noises around, although he couldn't help being somewhat afraid. He kept turning around and then telling himself to remain calm. Lord Voldemort wasn't the only evil in the wizarding world. There were plenty of evil animals and such in the Dark Forest that didn't care one bit that he was in Voldemort's inner circle. Then a noise behind him - like a twig snapping - startled him so that he stood in his spot for a good two minutes. He jumped again at the sound of a howling animal. It sounded as though it was in pain. He shook it off and continued walking.  
  
Lucius didn't realize that he was being watched at that moment. He wasn't being watched intentionally, however. What was watching him was in no state to understand what was going on in its own mind. Although it was taking in the fact that Lucius Malfoy was headed deep into the Dark Forest, it's mind could not register that idea or take any action at the time.  
  
He continued walking and found an area at the heart of the Dark Forest. There were no trees there although it was surrounded by an unfathomable evil that made trees, darkness and animals unnecessary. He looked around and noticed an unusually large cauldron - but it was empty. Then, right next to the cauldron, he saw vials of liquid. The liquid in each vial was a different color and a different substance all together. Lucius didn't recognize any of these chemicals.  
  
Another figure stepped into the very same area. "Master." Lucius Malfoy greeted Lord Voldemort.  
  
"Ah, yes, Lucius." Voldemort replied, turning around to face him. "The boy." He demanded. Before Lucius could answer, Voldemort's dilated eyes jumped as he looked around. "Lucius. where is the boy?"  
  
"My son, Draco, is bringing him."  
  
"Can he be trusted?"  
  
"Of course." Lucius recoiled as though he had been insulted.  
  
"Good. Then he should be here soon. I'm counting on this Lucius. Don't disappoint me." Lucius nodded. Only minutes later, Draco entered with Harry floating limply behind him. Lucius didn't speak to him but looked at Lord Voldemort.  
  
Then Draco said, "I've brought him." He used his wand to drag Harry's levitated body so that it was now in front of him, facing Voldemort. Then he tucked his wand back in his robes quickly and allowed Harry's body to drop to the grassy earth.  
  
A wide, evil grin spread over Lord Voldemort's face. He was now human now, just very weak. Now that he had Harry, he'd be able to finish him off and return to full power.  
  
"Very good Draco. You've done well. Now little is left to be done. All that is needed is this potion." He showed them the potion he was talking about in a small book. "It is very complex as you might notice. I'll need the help of you both." They nodded in agreement.  
  
"Of course, Master." Lucius said. Draco was still nodding, looking very foolish. His father shot him a threatening look. Before Lucius could say anything to Draco, Bridget strolled in.  
  
"I took care of the girls and I followed Draco here." She told them, explaining how she knew where they were to meet.  
  
"Good." Voldemort said with a stern look plastered on his face. "We don't want any mix ups this time."  
  
"No, sir." Lucius replied. "All necessary... er... precautions have been taken. The boy is here. The girls are there and can't interfere." He stopped for a moment and looked into the night sky. "We couldn't have chosen a better night. That Lupin character is a werewolf now. Werewolves wouldn't even dare come into this pit of the forest." He was feeling much braver since he was now in Lord Voldemort's presence.  
  
"Good." Voldemort said with a serious and stern look plastered on his face. "Then let's begin making the potion."  
  
They were soon adding chemical after chemical into the cauldron that was prepared for them there. Draco noticed that they hadn't used any of those ingredients in Potions class but then realized that was probably because they were mostly poisons and things like that. Lord Voldemort was confident, though, when he assured them that the potion would not kill Harry at first. They'd need him alive for the Deprovack procedure to work. That was the name of this process. What they had to do was get Harry to drink enough of the potion so he'd become painfully paralyzed. Then they'd need to use the Deprovack procedure to suck all of Harry's magical abilities out of him. At the end of this procedure, Harry'd be so weak that any spell used against him could be fatal - even the simplest. Also, being that he'd have no magical powers left in him, he'd have no chance of trying to block the spells. His wand wouldn't work either.  
  
Voldemort was planning to make Harry suffer as much as possible before killing him. It was flawless. Nothing could go wrong, Lucius told them all. After about twenty minutes, the potion was complete and it was time to wake Harry up so he'd be able to drink it.  
  
Lucius went over to Harry and muttered, "Exarte pentrinum!" He then stepped back with his wand still raised as Harry started to come out of his petrified state.  
  
"What the-" Harry began, looking around to see where he was. When his eyes fell upon the four of them, he shouted, "FUCK!"  
  
Draco smirked and replied, "Oh, we missed you too." Then he shot snake-like cords out of the end of his wand. The cords ties Harry's ankles and knees together. They also pulled him hands together behind his back. This happened so fast that Harry didn't even notice he was being tied up until he found himself on his knees with his hands behind his back, unable to stand.  
  
"Get the fuck off!" He shouted as Draco and the others walked closer. Lucius and the rest were very amused watching Harry struggle to stand up. The cords were thin, but unbreakable, and as Harry struggled to free himself from them they just dug deeper into his skin. His arms were throbbing in pain. He could've sworn the cords got tighter around his wrists. He could no longer feel his hands.  
  
"Now, now Harry. There's no use struggling." Lord Voldemort spoke for the first time in the past half hour. "Just drink your medicine like a good boy." He teased, grabbing Harry by the jaw. Harry jerked his head away  
  
After an extremely messy force feedng, Lord Voldemort and his minions successfully got Harry to swallow the potion. This left Harry in a paralyzed state of some sort. He could not move a single muscle and all he could feel was a cold, icy liquid running through his veins all throughout his body. The coldness reached to the very tips of his fingers and all the way down to his toes. They watched him anxiously while he lay helpless on his stomach.  
  
Voldemort, Lucius, Draco and Bridget just stood and stared and waited. At this point, Harry was so cold that he thought he'd freeze to death. He partially wished that they'd get it over with and put him out of his misery. Unfortunatly for him, they sat there waiting for a little more than three hours. One of them would jump excitedly as Harry involuntarily twitched his leg every so often.  
  
Just as Harry was wondering when the cold would leave, a force came over his body that caused him to go rigid. He cried out in agony because this was a pain much worse than that cold feeling he had before. Draco and Bridget watched in astonishment as Harry's whole body turned a crimson red. He cried out in pain again. It felt as though every bone in his body was being broken and his skin was now tingling with a horrible burning sensation.  
  
Is this dying? he thought. Is this what my parents felt? Is this what Cedric felt? Cedric Diggory's death was a horrible memory that still haunted Harry... especially since he saw it in person and realized that his parents died the very same way. Is this it? he was still asking himself as the pain steadily grew worse. He had never physically felt anything so awful in his life.  
  
Lord Voldemort finally stood up and the rest of them followed suit. "Very good." He beckoned for Lucius and Draco to move closer. Then he motioned his hands in a way that told Bridget it was her time to leave. She nodded and sulked back further and further away from the middle of the forest.  
  
When she was out of sight and earshot, Voldemort turned back to face Harry, who was still experiancing quite a lot of pain. Harry looked up at Lord Voldemort with tears in his eyes; streaking down his face.  
  
"Well, look at the famous Harry Potter now, won't you?" Lord Voldemort said. Harry only stared at him. "Not so special now, are you? Not so powerful now!" He had a crazed look on his face as he gave a horrible, screechy laugh.  
  
Unable to fight back, Draco sat Harry up against a tree stump. "Now Harry," Voldemort spoke again. "The rest is simple. You just sit here while we do all the work. And don't worry about the sharp pain through your chest - that only means that it's working properly." Harry sneered as he watched Lord Voldemort step closer, now holding a black book. Lucius and Draco Malfoy stood next to him on each side. Lord Voldemort pointed to something written in the book and they understood. All at once they began to chant something. But the second verse of this little chant, Harry felt something in his chest - like a knife. No, not a knife... like... well, something was being pulled out of him. He thought his insides would just fall out because something was pulling at him so hard.  
  
Harry let out a moan as something large, silver and undefinate floated out of his mouth and into the tip of Lord Voldemort's wand. He gasped for breath, feeling as though his chest had just been yanked through his mouth.  
  
He looked up at the sky, almost begging the heavens for help, and he noticed that it was getting somewhat lighter. Not much - the sun was just starting to rise. The moon was still in the sky.  
  
At the end of two hours, Harry's throat was dry and blood was flowing freely from one side of his mouth. Over fifty silver blobs had been sucked out of him. He was very pale - more than usual - and his bright green eyes were now glazed and dark. He now had very little life left in him and Voldemort, Draco and Lucius were doing their very best to suck it all out of him. He didn't know how much longer he'd be able to survive what they were doing to him but he doubted it would be very long. His breaths were now short and he was wheezing. His head was throbbing and he was shaking all over. The lightning bolted scar on his forehead was bleeding as well and it hurt more than anything.  
  
Harry was lying on his back - his chest moving up and down rapidly - looking at the sky. It was no longer dark. The sun was rising in the sky and the moon was no where in sight. Harry could hardly see, though, for the pain was blinding him. This throbbing pain which started at his scar and flowed throughout him was causing him to be helpless against whatever they were doing.  
  
At this point Lord Voldemort, Lucius Malfoy and Draco Malfoy stopped chanting. Lucius and Draco tucked their wands into their robes. Harry knew this wasn't over, though. Oh no... what's next? he thought.  
  
Lucius and Draco seemed to have backed off for the time being. They were now just sitting back to back on a tree stump. Lord Voldemort, on the other hand, began advancing towards Harry. He stood next to him, looking down and chuckling at the sight of him.  
  
"You're finally going to meet your parents, Harry. Yes, you'll be with them soon." Voldemort said darkly. He raised his wand and Harry winced. Any second now... he was thinking.  
  
"Avada Kedavra!" Lord Voldemort shouted.  
  
At the same time, somebody else screamed, "NOOOO!" and lunged at him from the side. The spell that Voldemort cast did not hit Harry's heart as it was supposed to, but it hit his stomach. Harry's chest hitched and his eyes grew wide as Remus Lupin wrestled down Lord Voldemort. In the rush of things, Lord Voldemort's wand got snapped in two. Draco and Lucius weren't even there at the time. They'd left before Voldemort even said the spell.  
  
Standing up, Remus pointed his wand at Lord Voldemort. "I knew you were still alive." Voldemort snarled. "You think you've won. Take a look around. You've lost. You're too late. I'll be back for you before you know it." Then he apparated, realizing that he wasn't going to win any more than he already had.  
  
Remus watched and when he was sure that Voldemort was gone for the time being, he turned to Harry. Harry was still breathing, amazingly. Since the spell only hit his stomach, it was taking some time to work its way up to his heart. Lupin ran to his side and held him up a bit.  
  
"Harry. Harry, no! Hold on... just... hold on." Harry gave him a small smile. "You're going to be fine." Remus tried to assure him, but his tone told Harry otherwise. His voice was cracking and he was crying. "C'mon Harry. Just... just hold on. You can't die now... no!" But Harry's chest hitched and he exhaled a great breath. Remus waited but Harry didn't inhale again. "NO!" He cried, hugging Harry.  
  
Lupin reluctantly stopped hugging Harry and lifted his body, still sobbing. He carried Harry back to the Hogwarts castle. Remus was shaking and more distraught than he'd ever been before. The only other time he had ever felt this way was with the news of James and Lily's deaths. 


	21. Mourning Morning

Chapter 19: Mourning Morning  
  
It was early in the morning at this time. So early that only Professor Dumbledore and a few other teachers were awake at the time. When they saw Remus Lupin enter the castle carrying a limp body, it caused quite a stir. Remus Lupin, afterall, was a werewolf and God only knew where he found that body. Even worse... it was a full moon the night before. He ran to the hospital wing, looking for Madam Pomfrey.  
  
"Madam Pomfrey! Madam Pomfrey! Please, open the doors!" he shouted.  
  
Madam Pomfrey was barely awake yet. She dragged her feet as she hurried over to open the doors. What she saw when she opened them made her forget that she was in a nightgown and hair net.  
  
"Oh my...! Bring him here!" She led Lupin to a bed. "What's happened?!"  
  
"Er... its a long story. I'd rather just tell Dumbledore, really."  
  
She looked at him sternly. "I'll call him down. You're not going to make me miss out on hearing this." She poked her head out the hospital door, hissed for Remus to stay there, and stormed out of sight headed for the Headmaster's office.  
  
When she returned, she was followed by Professor Dumbledore, Professor MaGonagall and Professor Snape. Peeves followed behind them and when she shooed him off he left singing, "Uh-oh! I smell trouble!"  
  
The teachers all gasped and began bombarding Remus with questions at the sight of Harry's body.  
  
"Please! Please..." he said, begging them to be quiet for a minute. "Let me explain."  
  
"You do have an explanation?" Snape asked. "You mean you didn't just go around last night and happen to come across Potter? I'm just surprised Weasley isn't here with him." Remus and Severus glared at each other.  
  
"No. If you'd like to listen..." he replied, offering them seats. "Well as you all know, Harry was kidnapped two nights ago. Last night, I found out where he was. Call it... intuition," The others had no idea what he was talking about but they let him continue. "I was able to get him out. There were two girls there as well."  
  
"Let me take a guess. Krystal and Roxeanne... or perhaps Hermione?"  
  
"Krystal and Roxeanne. Anyway, Harry wanted to go back and get them. After showing him where I found him, I felt the moon... and I transformed. Harry was already out of reach. I don't remember much from then til dawn but when I changed back, I heard some one screaming in the Dark Forest. Then I remembered seeing Lucius Malfoy walking that way before. So, I ran. I ran deep into the Forest. What I saw when I reached that one point was horrible. Harry was on the floor, barely breathing. Lord Voldemort was standing over him. Lucius and Draco Malfoy had apparated away nearly as soon as I got there."  
  
"Draco Malfoy knows how to apparate?"  
  
"It seems so. Well, I realized what Lord Voldemort was about to do, so I jumped on him from the side. Unfortunatly, my first instinct was too late and he had already said the curse. The curse did hit Harry but it hit his stomach, so he didn't die immediatly..." He paused and took a deep breath. "Lord Voldemort's wand snapped in half and he apparated as well."  
  
"Wait, wait," Snape stopped him. "I thought it was impossible to apparate onto or off of Hogwarts grounds. Wouldn't that include the Dark Forest?"  
  
"No, Severus. Many parts of the forest are not considered to be part of Hogwarts grounds," Dumbledore said. "Continue, Remus."  
  
"Well, that's it really. Realizing I was too late, I brought Harry here." Dumbledore nodded.  
  
"Where are the girls now?" Professor MaGonagall asked. Remus looked very nervous. He didn't want to tell them that he hadn't gone back for the girls.  
  
"We're right here," a faint voice replied. They all turned to look at the door where Roxeanne and I stood. Remus's jaw nearly dropped to the floor.  
  
"How did you girls find your way out?" He asked in amazement.  
  
"The same way you did. After Bridget left-"  
  
"Bridget?" The teachers asked.  
  
"Oh yes, she helped. After she left and we were stuck sitting there for hours, we finally noticed something on the ceiling of the room we were in. The room was so incredibly bright but our eyes did eventually adjust and we noticed that the ceiling of the room was made of tiles. After a while of pushing and prodding-"  
  
"With Roxeanne on my back," I interrupted.  
  
"Yes, I was on Krystal's back. But we finally were able to push it open and we found that it led right to the front of the castle."  
  
"This was only a little while ago that we found it, otherwise we'd have been here sooner." Once again, the teachers nodded.  
  
"I see," Snape said sternly. "Is that all you three'd like to share?" Roxeanne and I nodded but Lupin looked at the floor biting his lip. "Alright then."  
  
"What'll we do about this Albus?" Professor McGonagall asked.  
  
"Well, there are going to be many sad people when this gets out. 'The boy who lived'... has died." Again, there was silence. After some time, Dumbledore said, "We'll have to have a proper funeral for him, of course."  
  
"Isn't that up to his family?" Snape asked. They all turned to Remus.  
  
"Well, I suppose we need to ask Sirius, wouldn't you say? I doubt the Dursleys will want to give him a proper funeral. They don't give a damn about the boy."  
  
"I'm sure we'll make do," Dumbledore reassured him. "The problem is going to be... telling everyone." We all realized this. He was our savior. As long as he was around, we didn't have to worry about Voldemort because... really, Voldemort was after mainly Harry for sixteen long years.  
  
Roxeanne and I took it upon our responsibility to break the news of Harry's death to the Gryffindors. This would be difficult. We decided to approach Hermione and Ron first. We met them in the common room that evening and they were talking about Harry's mysterious dissappearance, as I had expected.  
  
"No, I haven't seen him in two days. I even went to the hospital wing in the morning yesterday just to make sure."  
  
"And?"  
  
"Nothing," Ron replied. They both looked frustrated.  
  
"He hasn't attended any classes. He'll be falling so far behind!" Hermione exclaimed after a moment of silence. Ron rolled his eyes at her and muttered something we couldn't hear.  
  
Roxeanne and I walked up to the two of them.  
  
"You guys?" I asked. "We have something to tell you about Harry."  
  
"Well it's about time someone's said something! We were wondering if you two knew anything," Hermione said.  
  
"Well, yeah. We know a lot... you might want to sit down," Roxeanne told them. They looked at each other and seemed very confused but they sat anyway.  
  
"I don't really know how to say this," I began. "Harry-" I paused, trying to think of how to put this delicately. I swallowed hard and blurted out, "Harry died last night."  
  
Ron immediatly burst up and began shouting, "WHAT?!"  
  
Hermione stayed sitting on the couch but her jaw was dropped. She was shaking her head back and forth slowly and quietly saying, "No."  
  
"Ron, please. This is hard for all of us," Roxeanne spoke up. "Let us explain what happened."  
  
Ron reluctantly sat down. Hermione perked up waiting to hear everything that happened. Roxeanne and I tried to explain everything so they could understand it. It was hard to understand if you weren't there. I kept refering back to how Remus worded his explanation. By the time we finished telling them everything, they both had tears in their eyes.  
  
"You- You've got to be kidding," Ron choked on his words.  
  
"I wish I was," Roxeanne told him.  
  
Hermione still seemed to be in shock, but now I could see that she was crying. "This can't be happening. This just CAN'T be happening," she kept saying.  
  
I put my hand on her shoulder. "I know, Hermione."  
  
She leaned over and hugged me. I felt like I could barely breathe because she was hugging me so tightly. She started really sobbing. "Not Harry, Krystal! Why him? This isn't fair!"  
  
"I know, I know," I said, trying to be as comforting as I could and trying to hold back my own tears.  
  
Ron was continuously wiping his eyes, not wanting to let himself cry. "Are you okay, Ron?" I asked after Hermione released me. He didn't answer. "Ron?" I asked again. "I know how you feel, Ron."  
  
"You don't know how I feel," he said bluntly, standing up and pushing me aside. "You can't possibly know how I feel." He started to walk towards the staircase leading to the boys' dormitory.  
  
"We lost him, too, you know!" I yelled at him as he climbed the staircase.  
  
* * *  
  
Ron reached his bed and sat down. This can't be happening... he thought. Harry can't be dead. It's not real. It can't be... This wasn't supposed to happen. Harry's the hero. He always was... the hero doesn't just... die. He tried to reason with himself and convince himself that Harry really wasn't dead. He wasn't really succeeding at anything, however. After accepting the fact that nothing he said was going to make Harry walk through the door into the dormitory, he stood up. He walked across the room and sat on a windowsill and gazed out the window. The sun was just setting and brilliant streaks of lavender, pink and orange were painted across the evening sky. Ron couldn't stand it. He didn't understand how the world just outside seemed so peaceful and serene whilst inside of his own world it was chaotic and full of anger.  
  
He let out a deep, shaky sigh and closed his eyes. Doing this caused some tears to roll down his cheeks. For a minute he just prayed - prayed that this wasn't true. He prayed that Krystal and Roxeanne were lying. He prayed that Harry, wherever he was, would remember him. He prayed for revenge on Lord Voldemort - the bastard who killed his best friend.  
  
The thought of Lord Voldemort sent adrenaline surging throughout Ron's body. For one moment he was so full of anger and power. His head was throbbing and Krystal's voice rang inside his head. "Harry died last night... Lord Voldemort... the Killing Curse..." He couldn't stand it any longer. In one swift movement, Ron took his hand up and punched through the glass pane of the window. The glass shattered into millions of tiny pieces. Ron just sat there for a moment with his fist sticking out of the window. He slowly pulled it back inside. His teeth were clenched and his knuckles were bloody. He calmly went to his trunk beside his bed and pulled out a hankerchief. He wrapped the cloth around his hand and sat on his bed.  
  
I'll kill myself before accepting the fact that one of my best friends is dead for no damned reason.  
  
* * *  
  
I was about to congratulate Hermione on how well she was taking the news so well and being so calm when she began crying hysterically.  
  
"I'm sorry," she said in between sobs. Then she got up and ran to the bathroom.  
  
"They're right, you know. This isn't fair at all."  
  
"Yeah..." Roxeanne replied.  
  
"I mean, Harry was-"  
  
"Perfect."  
  
"Yeah. He was, wasn't he? What did he do to deserve to die, hmm?"  
  
"He didn't do anything." Roxeanne said. "He was the perfect kid, honestly. I mean, he was our hero. Think about it Krystal. If it weren't for Harry, You-Know-Who would have been back in power in our first year! I mean, sure, Hermione and Ron helped him and everything but... what are the chances they would've made it through alone?"  
  
"Yeah! And Sirius would have gotten The Kiss if it weren't for Harry!"  
  
"And Ginny Weasley would probably be dead." There was a moment of silence. I wasn't sure what Roxeanne was thinking but I knew what was going through my own mind.  
  
"It's my fault," I finally said.  
  
"What?" she asked.  
  
"I made him go to the owlry with me that night."  
  
"Stop it, Krystal."  
  
"I'm serious! I asked him to go with me... it was almost a tradition for us."  
  
"Harry wanted to go too. You know that. None of this is your fault."  
  
I shrugged, not really wanting to talk about it anymore. The day went on normally for most people. Everyone attended their classes as usual and nobody noticed much of anything out of the ordinary. People were told that Mr. Remus Lupin was here on "Hogwarts business" and they were satisfied with that explanation. Ron, Hermione, Roxeanne and I were still the only students informed of Harry's death. Dumbledore had sent letters to the Dursleys, the Weasleys and, of course, to Sirius Black.  
  
Sirius, I thought. I was worried for him, honestly. He'd gone through so much already. He lost James, Harry's father, and now as he and Harry were developing a father/son bond, Harry's been killed. Sirius lost 12 years of his life, lost nearly all his friends. There was still Remus Lupin, of course. I had heard that they were friends since Hogwarts. At least they had each other now.  
  
Then my thoughts were interrupted as Professor McGonagall entered the Gryffindor common room. At first I thought she was angry, but I took a second look at her. She wasn't angry... she was... upset. Somehow, she looked scared. I had never seen McGonagall scared but she most certainly looked it now.  
  
"If everyone would please take a seat," she spoke softly. "Sit on the floor if you must." Everyone did as they were told. "I'm sure some of you have heard some wild rumors lately, correct?" Many people nodded. "Yes, well, Professor Dumbledore has asked me to clarify those rumors and give you all the truth."  
  
I watched Ron and Hermione. They had blank expressions on their faces although they knew what she was about to say.  
  
Professor McGonagall blew her nose and continued, "The truth is that... one of your classmates has died."  
  
A few people gasped; People began talking quickly saying things like, "I knew it," or, "Who is it?"  
  
"This will come as a shock to most of you, I'm sure. Harry Potter has died." I closed my eyes tight and wished everyone in the room would just dissapear. An uproar of voices - angry, distraught, upset, confused - came over the room. Everyone was now talking.  
  
"Impossible!"  
  
"How?"  
  
"Not Harry!"  
  
"Ginny, don't cry."  
  
People were sobbing, screaming, shouting, and others just sat in silent disbelief.  
  
"Now, now. I realize how upsetting this is and how sickening you may find it, but I will allow you a moment to collect yourselves, and then we are to proceed down to the Great Hall. Professor Dumbledore wishes to have a word with all of us," she said. Then she left through the portrait hole and waited for us outside.  
  
Roxeanne, Ron, Hermione and I turned towards each other. I looked at all three of them, but mostly at Ron. What are you thinking? I wondered as I watched Ron staring at the ground. I looked at his bandaged hand. I had asked him earlier what had happened but he snapped at me. I wish he and I had gotten off with a better start but we hadn't. He never liked me from the moment I had become friends with Malfoy. Now I could see why. I suppose that if I were in his shoes, I wouldn't like me very much either. After what Malfoy did to Harry, his best friend... I shuddered.  
  
Then, without really thinking what I was doing, I gave Ron a fierce hug. He stood there, startled, as I expected him to be.  
  
"What was that for?" he asked me as I let him go.  
  
I simpy shrugged, "Looked like you could use a hug right about now." He looked at me, still somewhat puzzled. Then everyone began to leave the common room and go out into the hall with McGonagall. We all followed each other out, all staring at the floor.  
  
"Thanks," Ron mumbled to me as we were walking out of the portrait hole. I smiled for a moment but sobered quickly as we walked to the Great Hall.  
  
Professor McGonagall led us into the Great Hall and we sat down at the long table that belonged to the house of Gryffindor. The other houses were already seated. Professor McGonagall joined the rest of the staff at the head table. Dumbledore was sitting in the middle as usual. For what seemed like an eternity nobody spoke. Because of the awkward silence, I assumed that the other houses were also informed of the main reason we were all sitting there. Then, as we began to wonder what was going to happen, Dumbledore cleared his throat.  
  
"You have all been informed about why you are here, but details have been left out. You all know that Harry Potter, your classmate, has died. The truth is that he has been murdered at the hands of Lord Voldemort."  
  
Whispers erupted around the hall.  
  
"Now, now. Allow explanations. Whether you wish to believe it or not, Lord Voldemort is among us. He has returned. Yes, this is true. Until now, we've all been safe here in Hogwarts walls. This is no longer true. We must realize the growing factor of danger within our lives today, even here at Hogwarts. The truth is, we do not know what happens now. We can only pray that Harry may rest in peace and finally be with his family."  
  
He paused for a moment and there was a respectable silence.  
  
"Hogwarts is no longer safe," he continued. "Lord Voldemort is gaining stregnth everyday and this is just more proof that he will stop at no means to achieve what he wants. Due to this, the Minister of Magic and myself have decided that it is in the best interest of yourselves if Hogwarts is temporaily closed until further notice."  
  
An uproar of disagreements arose around the Great Hall.  
  
"Close Hogwarts? They can't close Hogwarts!" Ginny squealed.  
  
"Bloody hell," Ron signed loudly. Hermione fiddled with her thumbs, biting her lip.  
  
"How can they just decide to close Hogwarts?"  
  
Dumbledore spoke again, "Prefects will now please lead their houses up to their dormitories. You are to begin packing immediatly. The Hogwarts Express will depart to take you all home at 12:00 tomorrow afternoon. Letters have been sent to your families explaining the situation." There was a slight pause and then he continued by dismissing us. 


	22. Forever Never Ends, Right?

Author Notes: Kari Lynn - We might just see Harry again in the future! Keep reading! (Hint: Being a dedicated Harry Potter fan, I'd never break a Harry Potter Amendment - especially one so critical!) **************************************************************** Hogwarts was closed that very next day. We all left our home away from home, many of us in tears. All of us sixth years spent the train ride home mourning over Harry (excluding the Slytherins, of course. They didn't give a damn). Quite a few younger students were just as upset. Most of the students on the train couldn't say that they were especially upset about Harry's death. Sure, it was a loss, they'd say. But they didn't know him. Well, they knew the boy who lived... but none of them truly knew him as his friends had.  
  
The train ride seemed to last days, although it was only a few hours. I ended up falling asleep for some time. I woke up just as we arrived at the train stations.  
  
"C'mon Krystal," Roxeanne said as she began to walk off the train. "I can see our parents."  
  
Sure enough, my parents and Roxenne's parents were there waiting for us.  
  
"Hi guys," I said, trying to fake a smile. "Here's my stuff." My older sister, Arianna, helped me with my bags. "Thanks," I said. I noticed that she had not said a word.  
  
"Krystal!" Roxeanne called just as she was leaving. "Write me when you get home!"  
  
"Okay!" I called back. "See you!" Then I turned to Arianna and said, "You heard about everything, I'm guessing."  
  
She nodded in reply. "Are you okay?"  
  
"Not really," I told her. Then mum and dad caught up to us and I knew it wasn't safe to talk about my feelings there anymore. Sure, I could tell my parents how upset I was but I could only talk to Arianna about my real feelings. I could surely tell her that I felt helpless and lost without him. I knew she'd understand, or at least listen, if I told her that Harry was everything to me and... with him gone, I've become nothing. It was as easy as talking to Roxeanne, I think. The only difference was that Roxeanne would actually understand what I was talking about since she experienced the same as I had.  
  
I arrived home hoping that I'd be able to go in my room and just mull over my own thoughts. I had hoped to be alone for a little, as I hadn't been in quite some time. Unfortunately I was stopped halfway up the staircase to my bedroom by my mother's voice.  
  
"Krystal, could you come here for a moment?" She was in the kitchen with my father and Arianna. "We'd like to talk with you."  
  
"What is it?" I asked, although I already knew what she wanted to talk about. I absent mindedly petted our the puppy that had jumped into my lap.  
  
"Are you all right, dear? This must be horrible for you."  
  
"Well, yeah. Of course it is. What do you expect? My boyfriend is dead." I clasped my hand over my mouth, realizing what I had just said. I knew it was true but because I said it, I unwillingly confirmed that it was true... something I had been avoiding. I didn't want to believe it, no matter how many people knew it was true. Tears formed at my eyes and I buried my face in my arms.  
  
"It's all right," Arianna told me, patting my back. "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to."  
  
I appreciated that more than she could've ever imagined and I took the opportunity to escape to my room. As I laid in my bed, I sunk into the feel of familiarity and took a look around my bed. Oh, I did indeed miss my room every year while I was at Hogwarts, but only now did I really appreciate the fact that my room, unlike so many other things in life, would be the same every year when I returned home. It would always be the same as I left it and when I returned, it would welcome me back with a sense of something that lasts forever. I soon drifted asleep.  
  
When I awoke a few hours later, I remembered to write to Roxeanne.  
  
Dear Roxeanne,  
  
Hey! Did you get home all right? Well, you guessed right - my parents wanted to have one of those deep talks as soon as I got home. Lucky for me, Arianna was there and I got away. Anyway, how are you? Did you talk to your parents yet? I guess all our families got sent the same letter from Dumbledore and the staff explaining things...  
  
You're going to the funeral, right? I hope so. Want to go together? I heard it's going to be held this weekend. They're supposedly burying him in the cemetery in Hogsmeade. Interesting spot... especially since it hasn't been used in years. Well, write back about going together. See you soon!  
  
Love,  
  
Krystal  
  
I sent the letter off with my owl, Siddy, and looked at the clock. It was flashing the time 10:37. My family lived on a street of Muggles, so we had many Muggle devices (such things as clocks, radios and a telephone incase neighbors stopped by).  
  
I got a letter from Roxeanne and we decided to go to Harry's funeral together. It was a miserable day outside. It was pouring and Dumbledore put up a charm so that we didn't get wet. The funeral attracted a lot of attention. People who didn't know Harry were there but that was expected... after all, this was Harry we're talking about.  
  
Harry was buried with some of his less useful or memorable possessions. He wore, by request of Mrs. Weasley, the last sweater she had made him. The majority of his things were now in possession of Sirius Black but most people didn't know this seeing as how Sirius was on the run from the Ministry of Magic. Snuffles was there, however. He was the mopiest dog I'd ever seen. Ron and Hermione were there together, of course, but I didn't see them much. The spent the whole time talking silently with each other. When I went over to say hello, it was very awkward. I saw Snuffles go up to them and they sat down and pet him, whispering to him. Every so often I'd hear him make a noise in response.  
  
Ron and Hermione began dating, not to anyone's surprise, only two days after hearing about Harry's death. We all knew they'd become drawn to each other because of it and Ron had already liked Hermione for years. I guess that Harry's death caused them to lean upon each other for support in different ways than some might've expected.  
  
I silently promised myself that I'd never forget Harry, which was true. I also told myself that I'd never care for anyone like I did for Harry. That was true too, I think. Harry was my first boyfriend ever and, though many people probably thing it was a schoolgirl's infatuation, he will always be there in my heart. I'm close to positive that I will subconsciously compare every boyfriend I ever have to Harry. Harry was my first boyfriend. More importantly, he was my friend.  
  
We all left the cemetery thinking the exact same thing, What happens now? Harry, our hero, was gone. Lord Voldemort was sure to rise to power once again... and where did that leave all of us? Only our elders really had any idea of what would happen now... and they still couldn't be certain. Everyone anywhere around my age had no idea what mass terror Voldemort could unleash. Because of that, we were more frightened than anyone.  
  
I guess what they say is true, I thought, the worst part... is not knowing.  
  
The End  
  
Author Notes: Well, what do you think? It's been a rough 20 something chapters, but did you like it? No, I probably won't end their 'Forever Love' here. I might be writing a sequel that will *most likely* have OOTP flashbacks and be much more. dark, I'd think. With the plans that I have (although plans change) Krystal will be facing more psychological problems (not necessarily HER psychological problems, mind you) in the sequel. I'll let you know what the sequel's title will be as soon as I start it up. In the meantime, I recommend you read: "The Marauders Discover the Harry Potter Series" by Destiny. Just look at my favorite stories or authors and she should be there! 


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